20Offences and prosecutions.N.I.
(1)Any person who acts in contravention of or neglects or fails to comply with any provision of this Act or of any rules made thereunder shall be guilty of an offence against this Act and shall, for each offence for which no special penalty is provided, be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding[F1 level 2 on the standard scale]F1, or on conviction on indictment to[F1 an unlimited fine]F1, and in either case (if a purchase or sale took place) to an additional fine not exceeding half the price at which the eggs were purchased or sold:
Provided that the fines imposed on summary conviction for any offence to which this sub-section applies shall not exceed in the aggregate one hundred pounds.
(2)Any person who—
(a)…F2 in connection with any record, return or other information which he is under this Act required to keep or furnish, makes any statement or furnishes any information which to his knowledge is false or misleading in any material respect; or
(b)F3... fraudulentlyF3... uses, or permits to be fraudulently altered or used, any …F4 document issued under this Act;
shall be guilty of an offence against this Act and be liable on summary conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three months, or to a fine not exceeding[F1 level 3 on the standard scale]F1, or to both such imprisonment and such fine.
(3)Any person who obstructs or impedes a duly authorised officer in the exercise of any power conferred on such officer by or under this Act shall be guilty of an offence against this Act and be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding[F1 level 2 on the standard scale]F1.
(4)A prosecution for an offence against this Act (other than an offence committed by an officer of the Ministry) shall not be instituted before a court of summary jurisdiction except by, or with the consent of, the Ministry.
(5)Where an offence against this Act is also an offence against any enactment relating to the sale of food or to the public health and enforceable by a [F5 district council], then and in such case sub-section (4) shall be deemed not so to operate as to require the consent of the Ministry to any prosecution the [F5 district council] may see fit to institute:
Provided that no person shall by virtue of this sub-section be liable to be punished more than once for the same offence.