The Energy Bill Relief Scheme Pass-through Requirement (Heat Suppliers) (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2022

[F1 Enforcement of requirement to provide information N.I.

11.— (1) An intermediary who does not comply with the requirement to provide information to the Secretary of State under regulation 10 is subject to civil enforcement action of the kind described in Schedule 4 to the Metering and Billing Regulations.

(2) For the purpose of paragraph (1), that Schedule applies to intermediaries subject to the following modifications.

(3) After paragraph 1 insert—

“Interpretation

1A.   In this Schedule—

“authorised person” means the Secretary of State;

“intermediary” means—

(a)

a heat supplier; or

(b)

a person who otherwise supplies and charges for the supply of heating or hot water to its end users through a heat network, where that person has been provided with a scheme benefit in accordance with regulation 3(2)(a) or (b) of the Energy Bill Relief Scheme Pass-through Requirement (Heat Suppliers) (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2022.

PART 1A N.I. Power to request information

Application of Part

1B.   This Part applies where an authorised person has reasonable grounds to suspect that a person is an intermediary.

Power to require the production of information

1C.   Before imposing a compliance notice on, or accepting an enforcement undertaking from, the person for failing to comply with the requirement to provide information under regulation 10(1) of the Energy Bill Relief Scheme Pass-through Requirement (Heat Suppliers) (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2022, the authorised person may give notice to the person requiring the person to provide the authorised person with the information specified in the notice.

Procedure for notice under paragraph 1C

1D.— (1) A notice under paragraph 1C must be in writing and must specify that the information is required in order to determine if the person is an intermediary.

(2) The notice may specify—

(a) the time within which and the manner in which the person to whom it is given must comply with it;

(b) the form in which information must be provided.

(3) The notice may require—

(a) the creation of documents, or documents of a description, specified in the notice; and

(b) the provision of those documents to the authorised person.

(4) A requirement to provide information or create a document is a requirement to do so in a legible form.

(5) A notice under paragraph 1C does not require a person to provide any information or create any documents which the person would be entitled to refuse to provide or produce in proceedings in the High Court on the grounds of legal professional privilege.

Enforcement of requirement mentioned in paragraph 1C

1E.   A person who does not comply with the requirement to provide the authorised person with the information specified in a notice under paragraph 1C is subject to civil enforcement action under this Schedule.”.

(4) In paragraph 2—

(a) for sub-paragraph (1) substitute—

“(1) This paragraph applies where an authorised person has reasonable grounds to believe that an intermediary has failed to comply with—

(a) the requirement to provide information under regulation 10(1) of the Energy Bill Relief Scheme Pass-through Requirement (Heat Suppliers) (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2022;

(b) the requirement mentioned in paragraph 1C of this Schedule.”;

(b) in sub-paragraph (2)—

(i) for “that person” substitute “the intermediary”;

(ii) for “offence does not continue or recur” substitute “intermediary complies with that requirement”;

(c) omit sub-paragraph (3).

(5) In paragraph 3(1)—

(a) for “a person” substitute “an intermediary”;

(b) for “that person” substitute “the intermediary”.

(6) In paragraph 4, for “A person” substitute “An intermediary”.

(7) In paragraph 7(1), for “The person” substitute “An intermediary”.

(8) Paragraph 8 is omitted.

(9) In paragraph 9—

(a) for “a person” substitute “an intermediary”;

(b) for “suspect that the person has committed an offence under regulation 11(1)” substitute—

“believe that an intermediary has failed to comply with—

(a) the requirement to provide information under regulation 10(1) of the Energy Bill Relief Scheme Pass-through Requirement (Heat Suppliers) (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2022;

(b) the requirement mentioned in paragraph 1C of this Schedule”.

(10) In paragraph 10(1)—

(a) in sub-paragraph (a), for “person to secure that the offence does not continue or recur” substitute—

“intermediary to secure that the intermediary complies with—

(i) the requirement to provide information under regulation 10(1) of the Energy Bill Relief Scheme Pass-through Requirement (Heat Suppliers) (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2022;

(ii) the requirement mentioned in paragraph 1C of this Schedule”;

(b) in sub-paragraph (b), for “the offence had not been committed” substitute “the intermediary had complied with that requirement”;

(c) in sub-paragraph (c), for “person to benefit any person affected by the offence” substitute “intermediary to benefit any person affected by the intermediary’s failure to comply with that requirement”.

(11) In paragraph 10(3)(c), for “a person” substitute “the intermediary”.

(12) Omit paragraph 11.

(13) In paragraph 12—

(a) in sub-paragraph (2), for “the person” substitute “the intermediary”;

(b) in sub-paragraphs (3) and (5), for “person” substitute “intermediary”.

(14) In paragraph 13(1), for “person” substitute “intermediary”.

(15) In paragraph 14—

(a) in sub-paragraph (2), for the words from “be a percentage” to the end substitute “not exceed £5,000”;

(b) omit sub-paragraph (3);

(c) after sub-paragraph (7), insert—

“(8) A non-compliance penalty is recoverable by the authorised person as a civil debt.”.]

Textual Amendments

F1 Regs. 10, 11 inserted (7.12.2022) by The Energy Bill Relief Scheme Pass-through Requirement (Heat Suppliers) (Amendment) Regulations 2022 (S.I. 2022/1280), regs. 1(2), 16