Agriculture Act 1970

80Institution of prosecutions

(1)Without prejudice to any other enactment relating to the place where proceedings may be taken, proceedings for an offence under this Part of this Act may be taken in the place where the person charged resides or carries on business.

(2)No proceedings for an offence under any of the following provisions of this Act, namely, sections 68(4)(b) and (c), 69(4)(c), 70(2), 71(2)(b) and 73, shall be instituted by any person other than the Minister unless the prosecutor has given to the Minister a notice of his intention to institute the proceedings, together with a summary of the facts on which the charges are founded, and either a period of twenty-eight days has elapsed since the giving of the notice or the Minister has signified that the proceedings may be instituted before the expiration of that period.

(3)A certificate of the Minister that the requirements of subsection (2) of this section have been complied with in relation to any proceedings shall be conclusive evidence that those requirements have been so complied with; and any document purporting to be such a certificate and to be signed on behalf of the Minister shall be deemed to be such a certificate unless the contrary is proved.

(4)Subsections (2) and (3) of this section shall not apply to Scotland.