128.—(1) A proceeding against a person in respect of any offence under any provision contained in this Order shall be commenced within one year after the offence was committed, and the time so limited by this article shall, in the case of any proceedings under the Magistrates' Courts Act 1980(1) for any such offence, be substituted for any limitation of time contained in that Act.
(2) For the purposes of this article the laying of an information shall be deemed to be the commencement of a proceeding.
(3) A magistrates' court may act under paragraph (4) if it is satisfied on an application by a constable or Crown Prosecutor—
(a)that there are exceptional circumstances which justify the granting of the application; and
(b)that there has been no undue delay in the investigation of the offence to which the application relates.
(4) The magistrates' court may extend the time within which the proceedings must be commenced in pursuance of paragraph (1) to not more than 24 months after the offence was committed.
(5) If the magistrates' court acts under paragraph (4), it may also make an order under paragraph (6) if it is satisfied, on an application by a constable or Crown Prosecutor, that documents retained by the relevant registration officer in pursuance of rule 69 of Schedule 5 may provide evidence relating to the offence.
(6) An order under this paragraph is an order—
(a)directing the relevant registration officer not to cause the documents to be destroyed at the expiry of the period of one year mentioned in rule 69 of Schedule 5; and
(b)extending the period for which he is required to retain them under that rule by such further period not exceeding 12 months as is specified in the order.
(7) The making of an order under paragraph (6) does not affect any other power to require the retention of the documents.
(8) An application under this article must be made not more than one year after the offence was committed.
(9) Any party to—
(a)an application under paragraph (3); or
(b)an application under paragraph (5),
who is aggrieved by the refusal of the magistrates' court to act under paragraph (4) or to make an order under paragraph(6) (as the case may be) may appeal to the Crown Court.