The Plastic Materials and Articles in Contact with Food Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006

PART 3 Execution and Enforcement

Enforcement

14.  Each district council in its district shall execute and enforce —

(a) the provisions of Regulation 1895/2005 mentioned in regulation 13, and

(b) these Regulations.

Offences and Penalties

15.—(1) Any person who —

(a) contravenes regulation 3(1), 4(1), 5(1), 12(1) or 13(2) to (5);

(b) intentionally obstructs any person acting in the execution of Regulation 1895/2005 or these Regulations;

(c) contravenes regulation 13(6) or, without reasonable excuse, fails to give to any person acting in the execution of Regulation 1895/2005 or these Regulations any assistance or information which that person may reasonably require; or

(d) in purported compliance with any requirement mentioned in sub-paragraph (c), knowingly or recklessly supplies information that is false or misleading in any material particular,

is guilty of an offence.

(2) Anyone convicted of an offence under these Regulations is liable —

(a) in the case of an offence under paragraph (1)(a) —

(i) on conviction on indictment to a fine or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or to a fine or both;

(ii) on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or to both;

(b) in the case of any other offence under these Regulations to a term of imprisonment not exceeding six months or to a fine not exceeding level five on the standard scale or both.

(3) Nothing in paragraph (1)(c) is to be construed as requiring any person to answer any question or give any information if to do so might incriminate him.

(4) No prosecution for an offence under these Regulations shall be begun after the expiry of three years from the commission of the offence or one year from its discovery by the prosecutor, whichever is the earlier.

(5) Where the commission by any person of an offence under these Regulations is due to the act or default of some other person, that other person shall also be guilty of the offence; and a person may be charged with and convicted of the offence whether or not proceedings are taken against the first mentioned person.

General defences

16.—(1) In any proceedings for an offence under these Regulations it shall, subject to paragraph (5), be a defence for the person accused to prove that he took all reasonable precautions and exercised all due diligence to avoid the commission of the offence by himself or by a person under his control.

(2) Without prejudice to the generality of paragraph (1), a person accused of an offence under these Regulations who did not —

(a) prepare the plastic material or article or, as the case may be, the material or article in respect of which the offence is alleged to have been committed; nor

(b) import it into the United Kingdom,

shall be taken to have established the defence provided by paragraph (1) if he satisfies the requirements of paragraphs (3) and (4).

(3) A person satisfies the requirements of this paragraph if he proves —

(a) that the commission of the offence was due to the act or default of some other person who was not under his control, or to reliance on information supplied by such a person;

(b) that either —

(i) he carried out all such checks of the plastic material or article or material or article in question as were reasonable in all the circumstances, or

(ii) it was reasonable in all the circumstances for him to rely on checks carried out by the person who supplied him with the plastic material or article or the material or article in question; and

(c) that he did not know and had no reason to suspect at the time the offence was committed that his act or omission would amount to an offence under these Regulations.

(4) A person satisfies the requirements of this paragraph if the offence is one of sale and he proves —

(a) that the commission of the offence was due to the act or default of some other person who was not under his control, or to reasonable reliance on information supplied by such a person;

(b) that the sale of which the alleged offence consisted was not a sale under his name or mark; and

(c) that he did not know and could not reasonably have been expected to know at the time the offence was committed that his act or omission would amount to an offence under these Regulations.

(5) If in any case the defence provided by this regulation involves the allegation that the commission of the offence was due to the act or default of another person, or to reliance on information supplied by another person, the person accused shall not without leave of the court be entitled to rely on that defence unless —

(a) at least seven clear days before and including the date of the hearing; and

(b) where he has previously appeared before the court in connection with the alleged offence, within one month of his first such appearance,

he has served on the prosecutor a written notice giving such information identifying or assisting in the identification of that other person as was then in his possession.

Transitional defences and savings

17.  Not withstanding the revocations made in regulation 23, in relation to any plastic material or article —

(a) manufactured before the 1st July 1998, the defence in regulation 3(3) of the 1998 Regulations;

(b) manufactured or imported into the European Community before 1st January 2003, the defence in regulation 10(13) of the 1998 Regulations;

(c) put into free circulation in the European Community before 30th November 2002, the defence in regulation 10(14) of the 1998 Regulations;

(d) manufactured or imported into the European Community before 1st March 2004, the defence in regulation 10(19)(a) of the 1998 Regulations as in operation on the 28th February 2003;

(e) manufactured or imported into the European Community before 1st March 2003, the defence in regulation 10(19)(b) of the 1998 Regulations as in operation on the 28th February 2003;

(f) containing azodicarbonamide and brought into contact with food before 2nd August 2005, the defence in regulation 10(23) of the 1998 Regulations; or

(g) manufactured or imported into the European Community before 1st March 2006, the defence in regulation 10(25) of the 1998 Regulations,

shall apply in relation to offences under these Regulations in like manner as it applied to offences under the equivalent provisions in those Regulations.

Procedure where a sample is to be analysed

18.—(1) An authorised officer who has procured a sample under Article 29 of the Order and who considers it should be analysed shall divide the sample into three parts.

(2) If the sample consists of sealed containers and opening them would, in the opinion of the authorised officer, impede a proper analysis, the authorised officer shall divide the sample into parts by putting the containers into three lots, and each lot shall be treated as being a part.

(3) The authorised officer shall —

(a) if necessary place each part in a suitable container and seal it;

(b) mark each part or container;

(c) as soon as reasonably practicable, give one part to the owner and notify him in writing that the sample will be analysed;

(d) submit one part for analysis in accordance with Article 30 of the Order; and

(e) retain one part for future submission under regulation 19.

(4) For the purpose of this regulation and regulation 19 analysis includes examination.

Secondary analysis by the Government Chemist

19.—(1) Where a sample has been retained under regulation 18 and —

(a) proceedings are intended to be or have been commenced against a person for an offence under these Regulations; and

(b) the prosecution intends to adduce as evidence the result of the analysis mentioned in regulation 18,

paragraphs (2) to (7) shall apply.

(2) The authorised officer —

(a) may of his own volition;

(b) shall if requested by the prosecutor (if a person other than the authorised officer);

(c) shall if the court so orders; or

(d) shall (subject to paragraph (5)) if requested by the defendant,

send the retained part of the sample to the Government Chemist for analysis.

(3) The Government Chemist shall analyse the part sent to him under paragraph (2) and send to the authorised officer a certificate of analysis;

(4) Any certificate of the results of testing transmitted by the Government Chemist under this regulation shall be signed by or on behalf of him, but the testing may be carried out by any person under the direction of the person who signs the certificate.

(5) The authorised officer shall immediately on receipt supply the prosecutor (if a person other than the authorised officer) and the defendant with a copy of the Government Chemist’s certificate of analysis.

(6) Where a request is made under paragraph (2)(d) the authorised officer may give notice in writing to the defendant requesting payment of a fee specified in the notice to defray some or all of the Government Chemist’s charges for performing the functions under paragraph (3), and in the absence of agreement by the defendant to pay the fee specified in the notice the authorised officer may refuse to comply with the request.

(7) In this regulation “defendant” includes a prospective defendant.