Securing the destruction of anti-personnel mines

7 Suspicious objects.

(1)

If—

(a)

the Secretary of State has grounds to suspect that an object is a prohibited object, and

(b)

it does not appear to him that the only persons in possession of that object are persons whose possession of the object is prevented from being a contravention of section 2 by the provisions of section 4,

the Secretary of State may serve a copy of a notice falling within subsection (2) on any person falling within subsection (3).

(2)

A notice falling within this subsection is a notice which—

(a)

describes the object and states its location;

(b)

states that the Secretary of State suspects that the object is a prohibited object and gives the reasons for his suspicion;

(c)

states that he is considering whether to secure its destruction under sections 8 to 10;

(d)

states that any person may make representations that the object is not a prohibited object or is lawfully in his possession; and

(e)

states that a person on whom the notice is served and who has the object in his possession must not relinquish possession before a date specified in the notice.

(3)

The persons falling within this subsection are—

(a)

any person who appears to the Secretary of State to have the object in his possession; and

(b)

any person not falling within paragraph (a) who appears to the Secretary of State to have an interest which the Secretary of State believes will be materially affected by the service of the notice.