UK Offence Report

Failure to comply with directions

article 8(1) of The Newport (Isle of Wight) Harbour Revision Order 2021

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

1 A person who fails to comply with

a general direction or special direction shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to

a fine not exceeding level

4 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 This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.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
failing to comply with a notice or direction
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 a person 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 article 8(1)?

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 an offence is committed where a person fails to comply with a general direction or special direction.
  2. Being served with a notice under the Newport (Isle of Wight) Harbour Revision Order 2021 and doing nothing by the date it specifies.
  3. Doing part of what the notice requires, where it required all of it.
  4. Disagreeing with the notice and ignoring it, rather than using whatever appeal the instrument provides.

Penalty

Mode of trial
Summary only — tried in a magistrates’ court
Maximum fine
£2,500
Standard scale
Level 4
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
9 February 2021
In force from
10 March 2021
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, made on the application of the Isle of Wight Council (“the Council”), modernises and consolidates the statutory harbour powers applying in relation to Newport Harbour and provides for the following matters: 1 Clarifying the limits of the harbour (article 3) including maps and plans of the harbour limits. The Order defines the limits of Newport Harbour by way of World Geodetic System coordinates (“WGS84”) and includes harbour premises (defined in article 2) but also requires the Council to maintain an illustrative plan showing the harbour limits and harbour premises, which must be updated within 30 days of any changes (article 3) and may be inspected at www.iow.gov.uk and, during working hours, at the principal office of the Council at County Hall, High Street, Newport, Isle of Wight PO30 1UD. 2 Conferring on the Council and the harbour master (defined in article 2) powers of general and special direction for the regulation and management of the harbour (articles 4 to 10). General directions may be given by the Council for the purpose of promoting or securing conditions conducive to: the ease, convenience or safety of navigation; the safety of persons; the protection of property; or the prevention or amelioration of environmental harm in the harbour (article 4). Special directions may be given by the harbour master for various purposes related to the management of the harbour and the regulation of vessels using the harbour (article 7). A register of all in force general directions may be inspected during working hours at the harbour office of the Council (article 4). 3 Creating an offence of failing to comply with special or general directions, the penalty for which is a fine on summary conviction not exceeding level 4 on the standard scale (article 8). A defence of due diligence is available to a person charged under article 8 (article 8(2)). 4 Conferring on the Council appropriate general powers and functions for the management of the harbour (article 11). 5 Incorporating provisions from the Harbours, Docks, Piers Clauses Act 1847 (article 12). 6 Conferring on the Council the power to grant tenancies and to dispose of land forming part of the harbour premises (defined in article 2) and to engage in commercial activities (articles 13 and 14); 7 Requiring the owner of master of a vessel to provide information relating to a vessel for the purpose of landing charge, where requested by the Council (article 16); 8 Creating an offence of obstructing officers of the Council without reasonable excuse (article 16). 9 Providing savings for the Crown (article 17) and Trinity House (article 18). 10 To facilitate the above, the Order amends the Orders of 1968 and 1988 as set out in article 20. A full impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no, or no significant, impact on the private, voluntary or public sector is foreseen. An explanatory memorandum is available alongside the instrument on the UK Legislation website at www.legislation.gov.uk.

Read the full note and every offence in this instrument

How this became law

This instrument became law without a debate or a vote. Under the negative procedure it took effect unless a motion to stop it succeeded, and none was tabled.

Neither House could have amended it. A statutory instrument is put to each House as a whole thing, to be approved or not; the Houses can reject an instrument or record their regret, but they cannot change a word of it. That is the constitutional position for every offence on this site.

The full procedural history →

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 0.92.

Basis
the provision says a person is “guilty of an offence”
Confidence
0.92 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