Part II Potato Marketing
Transfer scheme
31 Information.
(1)
The Ministers may by notice require any person to supply to them such information as may be specified in the notice, being information the supply of which the Ministers consider necessary or desirable for the purpose of enabling them to carry out their functions in relation to an application under section 27 or 30 above.
(2)
A notice under subsection (1) above shall require the information to be supplied within such period as may be specified in the notice, being not less than 21 days from the date of the notice.
(3)
Where the Ministers give a notice under subsection (1) above to the Board, it shall be treated as having withdrawn its application under section 27 or, as the case may be, 30 above unless—
(a)
it complies with the notice, or
(b)
before the end of the period allowed for compliance, it shows to the Ministers’ satisfaction that it has reasonable grounds for not doing so.
(4)
Where—
(a)
the Ministers give a notice under subsection (1) above to the Board,
(b)
the Board purports to comply with the notice, and
(c)
it becomes apparent to the Ministers after the time allowed for compliance with the notice and before the application concerned has been finally determined that the Board has not in fact complied with it,
the Ministers shall give the Board notice of that fact.
(5)
Where, within 14 days of the date of a notice under subsection (4) above, the Board shows to the satisfaction of the Ministers that the failure to comply with the notice under subsection (1) above was accidental and not attributable to a failure to take reasonable care, subsection (3) above shall be treated as never having had any application in relation to it.
(6)
If any person other than the Board fails without reasonable excuse to comply with a notice under subsection (1) above, he shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale.
(7)
If any person, in purported compliance with a notice under subsection (1) above, knowingly or recklessly supplies information which is false or misleading in a material respect, he shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale.