UK Offence Report

Powers of entry: England

article 25A(6) of The Council Tax and Non-Domestic Rating (Powers of Entry: Safeguards) (England) Order 2015

This offence was read from the text as made, and no revised version was available, so a later revocation could not be ruled out. Check the current text at legislation.gov.uk.

What the provision says

6 A person who intentionally delays or obstructs

a person in the exercise of

a power under this section is liable on summary conviction to

a fine not exceeding level

1 on the standard scale.

Text as made, from legislation.gov.uk. © Crown copyright, reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0. This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.

Who it binds, and what has to be proved

Binds
a person
Conduct
obstructing an official exercising a power
Fault element
Requires proof of a state of mind
Burden of proof
No statutory defence — prosecution proves everything

The prosecution must prove both that the conduct happened and that it was done with the state of mind the provision names (intentionally).

The provision states no defence, so the prosecution bears the burden on every element of the offence.

Classifier’s reasoning: mens rea word in the offence-creating words: intentionally.

What would breach article 25A(6)?

These are illustrations, not law. They are generated from the provision’s own words to show the shape of the offence. Whether any particular conduct is caught depends on the full text, on any amendment since, and on the facts.

  1. Refusing to let an inspector onto premises they are entitled to enter under the Council Tax and Non-Domestic Rating (Powers of Entry: Safeguards) (England) Order 2015.
  2. Sending an official away, or telling staff to say nothing, where the power being exercised does not depend on anyone's consent.
  3. Physically blocking an examination, or removing something an officer has said they intend to inspect.

Penalty

Mode of trial
Summary only — tried in a magistrates’ court
Maximum fine
£200
Standard scale
Level 1
Maximum prison (summary)
Not determined

Sentencing

Offences of this kind are usually sentenced under the guidelines below. This is a mapping by subject, not a finding about this provision, and the links go to a search of the Sentencing Council’s own site.

Prosecution figures

No published per-offence figure was found for this provision, and it could not be matched to a Ministry of Justice offence code. Offences created by statutory instrument very largely do not have one. Absence of a figure is not evidence that the offence is unused.

Status and lifecycle

Current status
Status not determined
Made
26 March 2015
In force from
1 October 2015
Extent
Not stated

How this was established: read from the text as made; no revised version available, so later revocation could not be ruled out.

What the instrument is for

(This note is not part of the Order) — the explanatory note published with the instrument, © Crown copyright.

This Order amends the Local Government Finance Act 1988 (“the 1988 Act”) and the Local Government Finance Act 1992 (“the 1992 Act”) to prescribe a new requirement that must be fulfilled before a valuation officer may exercise the powers of entry conferred by those Acts for the purposes of council tax valuation and non-domestic rating. It also makes amendments to the required notice period before exercising the powers under the 1988 Act, and changes the fine level specified in the 1992 Act. The amendments apply only in relation to England. Article 2 amends Schedule 9 to the 1988 Act to insert paragraph 6B, which makes new provision for powers of entry in England in relation to non-domestic hereditaments which are to be valued for the purposes of non-domestic rating. The valuation officer must obtain approval from the First-tier Tribunal prior to exercising the power. Having received approval the valuation officer must give 3 working days’ notice, in writing, before exercising the power. Paragraph 7 of Schedule 9 is amended so that it applies only in relation to Wales. Article 3 inserts section 25A of the 1992 Act, which makes new provision for powers of entry in England in relation to dwellings which are to be valued for the purposes of council tax. The valuation officer must obtain approval from the First-tier Tribunal prior to exercising the power. Having received approval the valuation officer must give 3 working days’ notice, in writing, before exercising the power. The level of fine specified for the offence of delaying or obstructing a valuation officer in the exercise of the power is level 1 on the standard scale. Section 26 of the 1992 Act is amended so that it applies only in relation to Wales. An impact assessment has not been prepared for this instrument as no impact on the private or voluntary sectors is foreseen.

Read the full note and every offence in this instrument

What Parliament said

Mentions of this instrument in Hansard. Parliamentary material is reused under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0.

Other offences in the same instrument

How this was identified as an offence

Everything above rests on the judgement that this provision creates a criminal offence, rather than mentioning one. That judgement is made by rule, from the words of the provision, and this is the rule that made it — with a confidence of 0.72.

Basis
the provision states liability on summary conviction
Confidence
0.72 of 1.00

A provision that states a penalty for an offence created elsewhere can read very like one that creates an offence, and the rules can mistake the one for the other. If the text quoted above sets a penalty for something made an offence by another provision, treat the classification on this page with that in mind, and read the instrument.

Check the source