(1)For the purposes of any proceedings for an offence under this Act a certificate signed by or on behalf of the Secretary of State and stating that at the time specified in the certificate—
(a)a State was or was not a party to the Protocol,
(b)a person was or was not an Antarctic Treaty official as defined in section 22, or
(c)a person was or was not a Convention official as defined in section 23,
shall be conclusive evidence of the facts stated in it.
(2)A document purporting to be a certificate such as is mentioned in subsection (1) shall be deemed to be such a certificate unless the contrary is proved.
(3)A document purporting to be a written authorisation such as is mentioned in section 3(4), 5(1), 7(1), 8(1) or 9(1) shall be deemed to be such an authorisation unless the contrary is proved.