The Marketing of Bananas Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2019

PART 5 Additional offences and penalties

Obstruction

17.  It is an offence for a person to—

(a) intentionally obstruct an authorised officer acting for the purpose of the enforcement of these Regulations, or a person accompanying such an authorised officer under regulation 6(3);

(b) without reasonable excuse, fail to give an authorised officer acting for the purpose of the enforcement of these Regulations any assistance or information or to provide any record or facilities that the authorised officer may reasonably require; or

(c) supply to an authorised officer acting for the purpose of the enforcement of these Regulations any information knowing it to be false or misleading.

Offence due to fault of another person

18.—(1) Where the commission by a person (“ A”) of an offence under these Regulations is due to an act or default of another person (“B”), B is guilty of the offence.

(2) Proceedings may be taken against B whether or not proceedings are taken against A.

Offences by bodies corporate

19.—(1) If an offence under these Regulations is committed by a body corporate or a partnership or other unincorporated association and is proved to have been committed with the consent or connivance of, or to be attributable to any neglect on the part of—

(a) a relevant individual; or

(b) an individual purporting to act in the capacity of a relevant individual,

that individual as well as the body corporate, partnership or unincorporated association is guilty of the offence and liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.

(2) In paragraph (1) “relevant individual” means—

(a) in relation to a body corporate—

(i) a director, manager, secretary or other similar officer of the body;

(ii) in a case where the affairs of the body are managed by its members, a member;

(b) in relation to a partnership, a partner;

(c) in relation to an unincorporated association other than a partnership, a person who is concerned in the management or control of the association.

Defences

20.—(1) In any proceedings for an offence under these Regulations, except under regulation 17, it is a defence for the person (“ C”) charged to prove that their actions were carried out with lawful authority or that C took all reasonable precautions and exercised all due diligence to avoid committing the offence.

(2) If C intends to rely on the defence provided by paragraph (1), C shall serve on the prosecutor a notice of that fact in accordance with paragraph (4).

(3) If the defence provided by paragraph (1) involves an allegation that the commission of the offence was due to the act or default of another person, C is not, without leave of the court, entitled to rely on that defence unless C has served on the prosecutor a notice in accordance with paragraph (4) giving such information identifying or assisting in the identification of that person as was then in C’s possession.

(4) The notice shall be served—

(a) at least seven clear days before the hearing; and

(b) where C has previously appeared before a court in connection with the alleged offence, within one month of C’s first such appearance.

Penalties

21.  A person guilty of an offence under these Regulations is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale.