Section 21 Disclosure to prosecuting authorityI1C1

to a prosecuting authority, and

for the purpose of enabling the authority—

F5the Director of Public Prosecutions,

in Scotland, the Lord Advocate or a procurator fiscal, and

in Northern Ireland, the Director of Public Prosecutions for Northern Ireland.

for considering whether an offence has been committed,

for discovering by whom an offence has been committed, or

as a result of which an offence is alleged to have been committed.

for a purpose connected with the exercise of the prosecuting authority’s functions, or

with the consent of the Commissioners (which may be general or specific).

that the disclosure was lawful, or

that the information had already and lawfully been made available to the public.

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

on summary conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding F712 months the general limit in a magistrates’ court, to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum or to both.

by the Commissioners, or

with the consent of the Director of Public Prosecutions for Northern Ireland.