17Prohibition on provision of security services without a certificate.
(1)A person shall not provide, or offer to provide, security services for reward, unless he is, or is acting on behalf of, the holder of a certificate in force under this Part.
(2)A person shall not publish, or cause to be published, any advertisement for the provision of such services by a person who is not the holder of such a certificate.
(3)Any person who contravenes subsection (1) or (2) shall be guilty of an offence and liable—
(a)on summary conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum, or to both;
(b)on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years, or to a fine, or to both.
(4)Where a person is charged with an offence under this section in respect of an advertisement, it shall be a defence for him to prove—
(a)that he is a person whose business it is to publish or arrange for the publication of advertisements; and
(b)that he received the advertisement for publication in the ordinary course of business; and
(c)that he had reasonable grounds for believing that the person advertised as the provider of the security services in question was the holder of a certificate in force under this Part.
(5)The following paragraph shall be inserted after paragraph 19C of Schedule 4 to the 1978 Act (scheduled offences)—
“Northern Ireland (Emergency Provisions) Act 1987.
19DOffences under section 17 of the Northern Ireland (Emergency Provisions) Act 1987 (provision of security services without a certificate).”
(6)In this Part “security services” means the services of one or more individuals as security guards (whether with or without any other services relating to the protection of property or persons).