23.—(1) Subject to the provisions of this Article, in any proceedings for an offence under this Part or any instrument made under it, being an offence relating to the quantity or pre-packing of any goods, it shall be a defence for the person charged to prove—
(a)that he bought the goods from some other person—
(i)as being of the quantity which the person charged purported to sell or represented, or which was marked on any container or stated in any document to which the proceedings relate; or
(ii)as conforming to the statement marked on any container to which the proceedings relate, or to the requirements of this Order, and any instrument made under it, with respect to the pre-packing of goods,
as the case may require; and
(b)that he so bought the goods with a written warranty from that other person that they were of that quantity or, as the case may be, did so conform; and
(c)that at the time of the commission of the offence he had no reason to believe the statement contained in the warranty to be inaccurate, that he did in fact believe in its accuracy and, if the warranty was given by a person who at the time he gave it was resident outside Northern Ireland and any designated country, that the person charged had taken such steps, if any, as were reasonably practicable to check the accuracy of that statement; and
(d)in the case of proceedings relating to the quantity of any goods, that he took all reasonable steps to ensure that, while in his possession, the quantity of the goods remained unchanged and, in the case of such or any other proceedings, that apart from any change in their quantity the goods were at the time of the commission of the offence in the same state as when he bought them.
(2) Where the proceedings are in respect of an offence committed by the person charged in the course of his employment, it shall be a defence for him to prove—
(a)that if his employer had been charged the employer would have had a defence under paragraph (1) in respect of a warranty; and
(b)that at the time of the commission of the offence the person charged had no reason to believe the statement contained in the warranty to be inaccurate.
(3) Where the person charged intends to set up a defence under this paragraph he shall, not more than fourteen days after the date of the service of the summons on him nor less than seven clear days before the date of the hearing—
(a)send to the complainant a copy of the warranty with a notice stating that he intends to rely on it and specifying the name and address of the person by whom it is alleged to have been given; and
(b)send to the last-mentioned person a notice giving the date and place of the hearing and stating that he intends to rely on the warranty.
(4) The person by whom the warranty is alleged to have been given shall be entitled to appear at the hearing and to give evidence.
(5) If the person charged in any such proceedings as aforesaid wilfully attributes to any goods a warranty given in relation to any other goods, he shall be guilty of an offence.
(6) A person who, in respect of any goods sold by him in respect of which a warranty might be pleaded under this Article, gives to the buyer a false warranty in writing shall be guilty of an offence unless he proves that when he gave the warranty he took all reasonable steps to ensure that the statements contained in it were, and would continue at all relevant times to be, accurate.
(7) Where in any such proceedings as aforesaid the person charged relies successfully on a warranty given to him or to his employer, any proceedings under paragraph (6) in respect of the warranty may, at the option of the complainant, be taken either before a court having jurisdiction in the place where the first-mentioned proceedings were taken or before a court having jurisdiction in the place where the warranty was given.
(8) For the purposes of this Article, any statement with respect to any goods which is contained in any document required by or under this Order to be associated with the goods or in any invoice, and, in the case of goods made up in or on a container for sale or for delivery after sale, any statement with respect to those goods with which that container is marked, shall be deemed to be a written warranty of the accuracy of that statement.