Health Act 2006

Enforcement

10 Enforcement

(1) The appropriate national authority may make regulations designating the bodies or descriptions of body which are to be enforcement authorities for the purposes of this Chapter.

(2) The regulations—

(a) must specify the descriptions of premises, place or vehicle in relation to which an enforcement authority has enforcement functions,

(b) may provide for a case being dealt with by one enforcement authority to be transferred (or further transferred, or transferred back) to, and taken over by, another enforcement authority.

(3) It is the duty of an enforcement authority to enforce, as respects the premises, places and vehicles in relation to which it has enforcement functions, the provisions of this Chapter and regulations made under it.

(4) The appropriate national authority may direct, in relation to cases of a particular description or a particular case, that any duty imposed on an enforcement authority by subsection (3) is to be discharged instead by the appropriate national authority.

(5) In this Chapter, “authorised officer”, in relation to an enforcement authority, means any person (whether or not an officer of the authority) who is authorised by it in writing, either generally or specially, to act in matters arising under this Chapter.

(6) If regulations under this section so provide, no person is to be so authorised unless he has such qualifications as are prescribed by the regulations.

(7) Schedule 2 makes provision about powers of entry, etc.

11 Obstruction etc. of officers

(1) Any person who intentionally obstructs an authorised officer of an enforcement authority, acting in the exercise of his functions under or by virtue of this Chapter, commits an offence.

(2) Any person who without reasonable cause fails to give to an authorised officer of an enforcement authority, acting in the exercise of his functions under or by virtue of this Chapter, any facilities, assistance or information which the authorised officer reasonably requires of him for the performance of those functions commits an offence.

(3) A person commits an offence if, in purported compliance with any requirement of an authorised officer mentioned in subsection (2)—

(a) he makes a statement which is false or misleading, and

(b) he either knows that it is false or misleading or is reckless as to whether it is false or misleading.

• “False or misleading” means false or misleading in a material particular.

(4) A person guilty of an offence under this section is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale.

(5) If a direction of the appropriate national authority has effect under section 10(4), this section has effect, in relation to any case or case of a description specified in the direction, as if references to an authorised officer of an enforcement authority were to a person acting on behalf of the appropriate national authority.