194.—(1) The Secretary of State may, subject to the 1986 Act, the 2004 Act, the 2018 Act and these Rules, make regulations with respect to any matter provided for in these Rules as relates to the carrying out of the functions of an SMCL administrator including, without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing provision, with respect to the following matters arising in an SMCL administration—
(a)the preparation and keeping of books, accounts and other records, and their production to such persons as may be authorised or required to inspect them;
(b)the auditing of an SMCL administrator’s accounts;
(c)the manner in which an SMCL administrator is to act in relation to the SMCL’s books, papers and other records, and the manner of their disposal by the SMCL administrator and others; and
(d)the supply by the SMCL administrator to creditors and members of the SMCL of copies of documents relating to the SMCL administration and the affairs of the SMCL (on payment, in such cases as may be specified by the regulations, of the specified fee).
(2) Regulations made pursuant to paragraph (1) may—
(a)confer discretion on the court;
(b)make non-compliance with any of the regulations a criminal offence;
(c)make different provision for different cases, including different provision for different areas; and
(d)contain such incidental, supplemental and transitional provisions as may appear to the Secretary of State necessary or expedient.
195. Where these Rules provide for creditors, members or contributories of an SMCL a right to inspect any documents, whether on the court file or in the hands of an SMCL administrator or other person, it is an offence for a person, with the intention of gaining sight of documents which the person has not under these Rules any right to inspect, falsely to claim a status which would entitle the person to inspect them.
196.—(1) The Schedule to these Rules has effect with respect to the way in which contraventions of these Rules are punishable on conviction.
(2) In relation to an offence under a provision of the Rules specified in the first column of the Schedule (the general nature of the offence being described in the second column), the third column shows whether the offence is punishable on conviction on indictment, or on summary conviction, or either in the one way or the other.
(3) The fourth column shows, in relation to an offence, the maximum punishment by way of fine or imprisonment which may be imposed on a person convicted of the offence in the way specified in relation to it in the third column (that is to say, on indictment or summarily), a reference to a period of years or months being to a term of imprisonment of that duration.
(4) The fifth column shows (in relation to an offence for which there is an entry in that column) that a person convicted of the offence after continued contravention is liable to a daily default fine; that is to say, the person is liable on a second or subsequent conviction of the offence to the fine specified in that column for each day on which the contravention is continued (instead of the penalty specified for the offence in the fourth column of the Schedule).
(5) Section 431 of the 1986 Act (summary proceedings), as it applies to England and Wales, has effect in relation to offences under these Rules as to offences under the 1986 Act.
197.—(1) Before the end of the review period, the Secretary of State must—
(a)carry out a review of these Rules;
(b)set out the conclusions of the review in a report; and
(c)publish the report.
(2) The report must in particular—
(a)set out the objectives intended to be achieved by the regulatory system established by these Rules;
(b)assess the extent to which those objectives are achieved; and
(c)assess whether those objectives remain appropriate, and, if so, the extent to which they could be achieved with a system that imposes less regulation.
(3) “Review period” means the period of five years beginning with the day on which these Rules come into force.