Chemical Weapons Act 1996

12 Suspicious equipment or buildings

(1) If—

(a) the Secretary of State has grounds to suspect that any equipment or building is a chemical weapons production facility, and

(b) at least one person falls within subsection (2),

the Secretary of State may serve on any person falling within that subsection a copy of a notice falling within subsection (3).

(2) The persons falling within this subsection are—

(a) any person who appears to the Secretary of State to occupy the land on which the equipment or building is situated,

(b) if the Secretary of State’s suspicion relates to equipment, any person not falling within paragraph (a) and who appears to the Secretary of State to have the equipment in his possession, and

(c) any person not falling within paragraph (a) or (b) and who appears to the Secretary of State to have an interest which the Secretary of State believes is materially affected by the notice.

(3) A notice falling within this subsection is a notice which—

(a) describes the equipment or building and states its location;

(b) states that the Secretary of State suspects that the equipment or building is a chemical weapons production facility and gives the reasons for his suspicion;

(c) states that he is considering whether to require the equipment or building to be destroyed or altered;

(d) states that any person may make representations that the equipment or building is not a chemical weapons production facility.

(4) If the notice relates to equipment it must state that a person on whom the notice is served and who has the equipment in his possession must not relinquish possession of, or alter or use, the equipment before a date specified in the notice.