Prosecution of Offences Act 1985

5 Conduct of prosecutions on behalf of the Service. E+W

(1) The Director may at any time appoint a person who is not a Crown Prosecutor but [F1 who has a general qualification (within the meaning of section 71 of the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990)] to institute or take over the conduct of such criminal proceedings [F2 or extradition proceedings] as the Director may assign to him.

[F3 (1A) The Director may at any time appoint such a person—

(a) to exercise a function of the Director under section 3(2)(ab) or (bb) in relation to a class or description of criminal proceedings specified in the appointment;

(b) to exercise a function of the Director under section 3(2)(ee) in relation to—

(i) such criminal proceedings as are specified in the appointment, or

(ii) a class or description of criminal proceedings specified in the appointment; or

(c) to appear in—

(i) Revenue and Customs cash recovery proceedings specified in the appointment, or

(ii) a class or description of Revenue and Customs cash recovery proceedings specified in the appointment.

(1B) In subsection (1A)—

• “Revenue and Customs cash recovery proceedings” means proceedings in which the Director or a Crown Prosecutor would otherwise appear by virtue of section 302A(2) of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (cash recovery proceedings relating to revenue and customs matters).]

(2) Any person conducting proceedings assigned to him under [F4 subsection (1) or exercising functions by virtue of an appointment made under subsection (1A)] shall have all the powers of a Crown Prosecutor but shall exercise those powers subject to any instructions given to him by a Crown Prosecutor.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words substituted by virtue of Courts and Legal Services Act 1990 (c. 41, SIF 37), s. 71(2), Sch. 10 para. 61(2) [Editorial Note: The amending legislation provides that the new words in s. 5(1) should be substituted for the words from "who is" to "authority". The words "who is" occur three times in s. 5(1) as enacted. It is thought that the context requires the substitution to begin with the second occurrence of those words.]

F2 Words in s. 5(1) inserted (1.1.2004) by Extradition Act 2003 (c. 41), ss. 190(4), 221; S.I. 2003/3103, art. 2 (subject to savings in Order (as amended by S.I. 2003/3312, art. 2(2) and S.I. 2003/3258, art. 3(2)))

F3 S. 5(1A)(1B) inserted (27.3.2014) by The Public Bodies (Merger of the Director of Public Prosecutions and the Director of Revenue and Customs Prosecutions) Order 2014 (S.I. 2014/834), art. 1(1), Sch. 1 para. 3(2)

F4 Words in s. 5(2) substituted (27.3.2014) by The Public Bodies (Merger of the Director of Public Prosecutions and the Director of Revenue and Customs Prosecutions) Order 2014 (S.I. 2014/834), art. 1(1), Sch. 1 para. 3(3)