The Food Safety(Northern Ireland) Order 1991

Regulations and orders: supplementary provisions

25.—(1) Regulations under this Part may—

(a) make provision for prohibiting or regulating the carrying out of commercial operations with respect to any food, food source or contact material—

(i) which fails to comply with the regulations; or

(ii) in relation to which an offence against the regulations has been committed, or would have been committed if any relevant act or omission had taken place in Northern Ireland; and

(b) without prejudice to the generality of Article 8, provide that any food which, in accordance with the regulations, is certified as being such food as is mentioned in sub-paragraph (a) may be treated for the purposes of that Article as failing to comply with food safety requirements.

(2) Regulations under this Part may also—

(a) require persons carrying on any activity to which the regulations apply to keep and produce records and provide returns;

(b) prescribe the particulars to be entered on any register required to be kept in accordance with the regulations;

(c) require any such register to be open to inspection by the public at all reasonable times and, subject to that, authorise it to be kept by means of a computer;

(d) prescribe the periods for which and the conditions subject to which licences may be issued, and provide for the subsequent alteration of conditions and for the cancellation, suspension or revocation of licences;

(e) provide for an appeal to a magistrates' court against any decision of a district council or the Department of Agriculture or of an authorised officer.

(3) Regulations under this Part or an order under Article 24 may—

(a) provide that an offence under the regulations or order shall be punishable on summary conviction or on indictment or in either one way or the other; and

(b) include provisions under which a person guilty of such an offence shall be liable to such penalties (not exceeding those which may be imposed in respect of offences under this Order) as may be specified in the regulations or order.