Regulation 46 Defence of due diligence

England and Wales

(1)

In any proceedings for an offence under these Regulations, it shall, subject to paragraph (2), be a defence for the accused to prove that he took all reasonable precautions and exercised all due diligence to avoid the commission of the offence by himself or by a person under his control.

(2)

If in any case the defence provided by paragraph (1) involves the allegation that the commission of the offence was due to an act or default of another person, or to reliance on information supplied by another person, the accused shall not, without leave of the court, be entitled to rely on that defence unless —

(a)

at least seven clear days before the hearing; and

(b)

where he has previously appeared before a court in connection with the alleged offence, within one month of his first such appearance,

he has served on the prosecutor a notice in writing giving such information identifying or assisting in the identification of that other person as was then in his possession.

Notes on the whole SI

Textual amendments

F1: 1972 c.68. Paragraph 1A of Schedule 2 was inserted by section 28 of the Legislative and Regulatory Reform Act 2006 (2006 c.51).
F2: S.I. 2003/2901.
F3: S.I. 1972/1811.
F4: S.I. 1999/2027.
F5: OJ No. L31, 1.2.2002, p.1, as last amended by Regulation (EC) No. 596/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council adapting a number of instruments subject to the procedure referred to in Article 251 of the Treaty to Council Decision 1999/468/EC with regard to the regulatory procedure with scrutiny: Adaptation to the regulatory procedure with scrutiny – Part Four (OJ No. L188, 18.7.2009, p.14).