PART 4Miscellaneous
Offences
Offence of giving false or misleading informationI120
1
A person commits an offence if the person—
a
makes a materially false or misleading statement—
i
in any of the documents listed in paragraph (4),
ii
in a response to a request to verify the accuracy of any information in such a document, or
iii
in a response to a request made by the Keeper under regulation 23(2) or (5), and
b
knows, or is reckless as to whether, the statement is false or misleading.
2
A person commits an offence if the person—
a
intentionally fails to disclose material information—
i
required in any of the documents listed in paragraph (4), or
ii
in a response to a request made by the Keeper under regulation 23(2) or (5), or
b
is reckless as to whether all material information is so disclosed.
3
A person who commits an offence under paragraph (1) or (2) is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale.
4
The documents are—
a
a notice to the Keeper under regulation 10 or 12,
b
a notice to an associate under regulation 13,
c
a notice to a recorded person under regulation 14,
d
a security declaration,
e
a notice revoking a security declaration,
f
a response to a request of the Keeper under regulation 16(8),
g
a notice to the Keeper under regulation 23(1) or (4).
Defence to false or misleading information offencesI221
1
Regulation 20(1) or (2) does not apply if the person (the “accused”) took all reasonable precautions and exercised all due diligence to avoid the commission of the offence.
2
The defence described in paragraph (1) is established if the accused—
a
acted in reliance on information supplied by another person, and
b
did not know and had no reason to suppose that—
i
for an offence under regulation 20(1), the information was false or misleading, or
ii
for an offence under regulation 20(2), all material information had not been disclosed.
3
Paragraph (2) does not limit paragraph (1).
4
An accused may not rely on paragraph (2)(a) unless—
a
the accused serves on the prosecutor a notice giving such information identifying or assisting in the identification of the person referred to in that paragraph as is in the accused’s possession,
b
the notice is served—
i
where an intermediate diet is held, at or before that diet, or
ii
where no such diet is held, at least 10 days before the trial diet, and
c
the court grants leave to do so.
5
Paragraph (4) does not apply if—
a
the accused lodges a defence statement under section 125 of the Criminal Justice and Licensing (Scotland) Act 20104 in accordance with the time limits mentioned in paragraph (4)(b), and
b
the accused’s defence involves an allegation that the commission of the offence was due to reliance on information supplied by another person.
Individual culpability where organisation commits offenceI322
1
This regulation applies if—
a
an offence under these Regulations is committed by an organisation of a type specified in column 1 of the table in paragraph (3), and
b
the commission of the offence—
i
involves consent or connivance on the part of an individual holding a position in the organisation that is specified in column 2 of that table for that type of organisation or purports to act in that capacity, or
ii
is attributable to neglect on the part of such an individual.
2
The individual referred to in paragraph (b) (as well as the organisation) commits the offence and is liable to the same penalty as any other individual committing the offence.
3
The table is as follows—
Organisation (Column 1) | Individual (Column 2) |
|---|---|
company as mentioned in section 1 of the Companies Act 2006 | director, manager, secretary or other similar officer |
member, where the company’s affairs are managed by its members | |
limited liability partnership | member |
other partnership | partner |
any other body or association | individual who is concerned in the management or control of its affairs. |