The TSE (Wales) Regulations 2002

Part VIII Community controls, offences, penalties and enforcement

Community controls: powers of inspectors

97.—(1) An inspector, on producing, if required to do so, some duly authenticated document showing his or her authority, may enter at all reasonable times any premises (excluding premises used only as a dwelling) for any purpose in relation to the checks and assistance referred to in Article 21 of the Community TSE Regulation.

(2) If a justice of the peace, on sworn information in writing, is satisfied that there is reasonable ground for an inspector to enter any premises (excluding premises used only as a dwelling) for any purpose mentioned in paragraph (1) above and either—

(a) admission to the premises has been refused, or a refusal is expected, and that notice of the intention to apply for a warrant has been given to the occupier; or

(b) an application for admission, or the giving of such a notice, would defeat the object of the entry, or that the case is one of urgency, or that the premises are unoccupied or the occupier is absent,

the justice of the peace may issue a warrant authorising an inspector to enter the premises for that purpose, if need be by reasonable force.

(3) The occupier of premises entered by an inspector under this regulation or by virtue of a warrant issued under it, and his or her employees and any person on the premises who is or has been in possession or charge of any mammalian meat and bone meal or processed animal protein, any animal or carcase which is or has been on the premises, or any specified risk material which is or has been on the premises, must—

(a) provide all reasonable facilities and assistance to the inspector and comply with all reasonable requirements the inspector considers necessary for any purpose in relation to the checks and assistance referred to in Article 21 of the Community TSE Regulation; and

(b) if required by an inspector, give such information as he or she possesses as to—

(i) any mammalian meat and bone meal or processed animal protein, any animal or carcase, or any specified risk material, which is or has been on the premises;

(ii) any animal or carcase with which any mammalian meat and bone meal or processed animal protein, any animal or carcase, or any specified risk material, which is or has been on the premises may have come into contact; and

(iii) the location, transport and movement of any mammalian meat and bone meal or processed animal protein, any animal or carcase, or any specified risk material, which is or has been in his or her possession or charge.

(4) An inspector entering any premises by virtue of this regulation, or of a warrant issued under it may take with him or her—

(a) such other persons as he or she considers necessary to give such assistance as he or she considers necessary; and

(b) a representative of the European Commission acting for the purpose of the Community TSE Regulation or the Community Transitional Measures or any Community legislation referred to in that Regulation or those Measures; and

(5) If an inspector enters any unoccupied premises he or she must leave them as effectively secured against unauthorised entry as he or she found them.

Obstruction

98.—(1) It is prohibited for any person—

(a) to intentionally obstruct any person acting in the execution of these Regulations;

(b) without reasonable cause, to fail to give to any person acting in the execution of these Regulations any assistance or information which that person may reasonably require for the purpose of carrying out his or her functions under these Regulations; or

(c) to furnish to any person acting in the execution of these Regulations any information which he or she knows to be false or misleading.

(2) Nothing in paragraph (1)(b) above shall be construed as requiring any person to answer any question or give any information if to do so might incriminate him or her.

Offences

99.—(1) If a person contravenes or fails to comply with any prohibition or requirement imposed by or under these Regulations, and the contravention or failure is not made an offence by any other provision of these Regulations, he or she shall be guilty of an offence.

(2) A person guilty of an offence under this regulation shall be liable—

(a) on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three months or to both; or

(b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or to both.

(3) No prosecution for an offence under any of the provisions of these Regulations shall be begun after the expiry of—

(a) three years from the commission of the offence;

(b) one year from its discovery by the prosecuter,

whichever is the earlier.

(4) Where a body corporate is guilty of an offence under these Regulations, and that offence is proved to have been committed with the consent or connivance of, or to have been attributable to any neglect on the part of—

(a) any director, manager, secretary or other similar person of the body corporate, or

(b) any person who was purporting to act in any such capacity,

he or she, as well as the body corporate, shall be guilty of the offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.

(5) For the purposes of paragraph (4) above, “director”, in relation to a body corporate whose affairs are managed by its members, means a member of the body corporate.

(6) In this regulation “prohibition or requirement” does not include a prohibition or requirement imposed on the National Assembly, the Secretary of State or the Agency.

Offences due to fault of another person and defence of due diligence

100.—(1) Where the commission by any person of an offence under any of the provisions of these Regulations is due to the act or default of some other person, that other person shall be guilty of the offence; and a person may be charged with and convicted of the offence by virtue of this paragraph of this regulation whether or not proceedings are taken against the first-mentioned person.

(2) In any proceedings for an offence under any of the provisions of these Regulations, it shall, subject to paragraph (3) below, be a defence for the person charged to prove that he or she took all reasonable precautions and exercised all due diligence to avoid the commission of the offence by himself or herself or by a person under his or her control.

(3) If in any case the defence provided by paragraph (2) above involves the allegation that the commission of the offence was due to an act or default of another person, or to reliance on information supplied by another person, the person charged shall not, without leave of the court, be entitled to rely on that defence unless—

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

(b) where he or she has previously appeared before a court in connection with the alleged offence, within one month of that first appearance,

he or she has served on the prosecutor a notice in writing giving such information identifying or assisting in the identification of that other person as was then in his or her possession.

(4) In paragraph (3) above any reference to appearing before a court must be construed as including a reference to being brought before a court.

Enforcement

101.—(1) Part II and Part IV of these Regulations shall be enforced—

(a) in relation to premises which are—

(i) licensed under the Fresh Meat (Hygiene and Inspection) Regulations 1995;

(ii) licensed under the Poultry Meat, Farmed Game Bird Meat and Rabbit Meat (Hygiene and Inspection) Regulations 1995(1);

(iii) licensed under the Wild Game Meat (Hygiene and Inspection) Regulations 1995(2);

(iv) combined premises as defined in the Meat Products (Hygiene) Regulations 1994(3); and

(v) combined premises as defined in the Minced Meat and Meat Preparations (Hygiene) Regulations 1995(4);

by the Agency, by the National Assembly or by the Secretary of State; and

(b) in relation to any other premises, by the local authority.

(2) The other Parts of these Regulations shall be enforced by the local authority.

(3) The National Assembly may direct, in relation to cases of a particular description or any particular case, that an enforcement duty imposed on a local authority under this regulation shall be discharged by the National Assembly and not by the local authority.

(1)

S.I. 1995/540 as amended by S.I. 1995/1763, S.I. 1995/2200, S.I. 1995/3205 and S.I. 1997/1729.

(2)

S. I. 1995/2148 as amended by S.I. 1995/3205.

(3)

S. I. 1994/3082 as amended by S.I. 1995/1763, S.I. 1995/2200, S.I. 1995/3205 and S.I. 1996/1499.

(4)

S. I. 1995/3205 as amended by S.I. 1996/3124.