UK Offence Report

Applications for registration

regulation 15(9) of The Representation of the People (Electronic Communications and Amendment) (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2018

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

9 After paragraph (6) insert— 6A Where the registration officer provides the form on which an application for registration is made, the form shall include— a the words “It is an offence to provide false information in this form”, and b a statement of the maximum penalty for the offence.

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 This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.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
an registration officer
Conduct
making a false or misleading statement
Fault element
Strict liability
Burden of proof
No statutory defence — prosecution proves everything

The prosecution must prove that the conduct happened. This is a strict liability offence as drafted: the provision uses no word of intention, knowledge, recklessness or negligence, so there is no need to show that an registration officer meant to do it, knew about it, or was careless.

Intention, knowledge and carelessness are irrelevant to guilt. They may still matter a great deal to sentence.

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

Classifier’s reasoning: no word of intention, knowledge, recklessness or negligence in the offence or its provision.

What would breach regulation 15(9)?

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. On these words it is an offence to provide false information in this form”, and b a statement of the maximum penalty for the offence.
  2. Entering a figure on a form or return that is known to be wrong under the Representation of the People (Electronic Communications and Amendment) (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2018.
  3. Leaving out something the form asks for, where the omission is what makes the answer misleading.
  4. Producing a document to an official that has been altered since it was issued.

Penalty

Mode of trial
Not determined
Maximum fine
Not determined
Maximum prison (summary)
Not determined

no penalty is stated here: this instrument amends another one, and the penalty for the offence is in the instrument being amended.

No penalty was determined from this instrument. It may be in the enabling Act, or in a general penalties provision this pass did not connect to the offence. Absence of a figure here is not evidence that the offence carries no penalty.

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
29 May 2018
In force from
30 May 2018
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 Regulations) — the explanatory note published with the instrument, © Crown copyright.

These Regulations amend enactments relating to registration to vote in Northern Ireland elections. Regulation 2 amends the Representation of the People Act 1983 to enable individuals to register online to vote in Parliamentary elections in Northern Ireland through the UK digital service. The amendments confer the function of acting as an intermediary for the Chief Electoral Officer for Northern Ireland on the Minister of the Crown responsible for providing the UK digital service and enable the use of electronic communications and storage in relation to that role and the exercise of that Minister’s other functions relating to the registration of voters in Northern Ireland. In an application submitted through the UK digital service, the online submission of the application including the declaration provided for by regulation 15(5) replaces the usual signature requirement. Provision is made for a digital registration number to be allocated to every applicant who has applied through the UK digital service who the Chief Electoral Officer determines is entitled to be registered and for notification of that number to the applicant. The procedure at the counting of the votes is amended so that the signature on the declaration of identity of each postal voter must match the signature provided in the individual’s application for an absent vote. Provision is made for an exemption from this requirement for those who applied for registration through the UK digital service where a determination has been made that it is not reasonably practicable for the applicant to sign in a consistent and distinctive way. Regulation 3 amends the Representation of the People Act 1985 in relation to applications for an absent vote at Parliamentary elections to provide that, in the case of an individual registered through the UK digital service, the application must include the digital registration number allocated to the individual. Part 3 (regulations 4 to 8) makes amendments of corresponding effect to enactments concerning local elections, Northern Ireland Assembly elections and Recall of MPs petitions. Part 4 (regulations 9 to 21) amends the Representation of the People (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2008. Regulation 15(5) provides for the replacement of the existing requirement in an application for registration for a declaration confirming the truth of the particulars given and that the applicant has the necessary citizenship for the election in question with a requirement to give the applicant’s nationality and a new declaration confirming the identity of the applicant and that the information given in the application and any accompanying declaration is true. The declaration must be read out to any applicant who is unable to read it and it may be completed on behalf of the applicant in the applicant’s presence by someone of at least 18 years of age if the applicant is unable to do so. Regulation 15(9) provides for a statement reminding applicants of the offence of providing false information in applications for registration to be included on forms of application for registration. The other provisions of Part 4 provide for: the use of email to be allowed for certain communications; a staff number, payroll number or other identifying number to be included in a service declaration; the removal of transmission requirements applicable to service declarations; the removal of the requirement for attestation of overseas elector’s declarations; reasons to be given where an applicant for registration cannot provide a National Insurance number; information obtained in connection with an application for registration to be retained until such time as the Chief Electoral Officer considers that it is not required; the list of applications for registration to be inspected by objectors instead of the applications themselves; verification of applications for registration using certain government databases; the use of the UK digital service for notification of changes of addresses to other registration officers; and other technical amendments. An impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no impact on the private or voluntary sectors is foreseen.

Read the full note and every offence in this 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 0.90.

Basis
the provision says “it is an offence”; the provision says an offence is committed “if” something happens
Confidence
0.90 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