National Security Act 2023

15 Foreign interference: meaning of “prohibited conduct”

(1) Conduct is prohibited conduct for the purposes of section 13 if—

(a) it constitutes an offence, or

(b) if it takes place in a country or territory outside the United Kingdom, it would constitute an offence if it took place in any part of the United Kingdom.

(2) Conduct is prohibited conduct for the purposes of section 13 if it involves coercion of any kind, including coercion by—

(a) using or threatening to use violence against a person;

(b) damaging or destroying, or threatening to damage or destroy, a person’s property;

(c) damaging or threatening to damage a person’s reputation;

(d) causing or threatening to cause financial loss to a person;

(e) causing spiritual injury to, or placing undue spiritual pressure on, a person;

(whether or not that person is the person to whom the interference effect relates).

(3) Conduct is prohibited conduct for the purposes of section 13 if it involves making a misrepresentation.

(4) A “misrepresentation” is a representation—

(a) that a reasonable person would consider to be false or misleading in a way material to the interference effect, and

(b) that the person making the representation knows or intends to be false or misleading in a way material to the interference effect.

(5) A misrepresentation may be made by making a statement or by any other kind of conduct, and may be express or implied.

(6) A misrepresentation may in particular include—

(a) a misrepresentation as to a person’s identity or purpose;

(b) presenting information in a way which amounts to a misrepresentation, even if some or all of the information is true.

(7) In this section “interference effect” has the meaning given by section 14.