Part VI Miscellaneous
Terrorist offences
58AF1Eliciting, publishing or communicating information about members of armed forces etc
1
A person commits an offence who—
a
elicits or attempts to elicit information about an individual who is or has been—
i
a member of Her Majesty's forces,
ii
a member of any of the intelligence services, or
iii
a constable,
which is of a kind likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism, or
b
publishes or communicates any such information.
2
It is a defence for a person charged with an offence under this section to prove that they had a reasonable excuse for their action.
3
A person guilty of an offence under this section is liable—
a
on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding F215 years or to a fine, or to both;
b
on summary conviction—
i
in England and Wales or Scotland, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum, or to both;
ii
in Northern Ireland, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum, or to both.
F33A
In subsection (3)(b)(i), in its application to England and Wales, the reference to 12 months is to be read as a reference to the general limit in a magistrates’ court.
4
In this section “ the intelligence services ” means the Security Service, the Secret Intelligence Service and GCHQ (within the meaning of section 3 of the Intelligence Services Act 1994 (c. 13)).
5
Schedule 8A to this Act contains supplementary provisions relating to the offence under this section.