Commentary on Provisions Offences relating to the use etc. of injurious articles or substances: fixed penalty notices Section 21: Offences relating to the use etc. of injurious articles or substances: fixed penalty notices
121.Section 21 of the Act inserts new provisions into section 140 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990, which contains a regulation-making power to prohibit or restrict the use, storage or supply of environmentally harmful items. As amended by the Act, section 140 will enable the use of a fixed penalty notice (FPN) procedure in relation to offences created in the regulations, such as the prohibition on the supply of certain single-use plastic items under the Environmental Protection (Single-use Plastic Products) (Scotland) Regulations S.S.I. 2021/410).
122.Inserted subsection (10A) allows the Scottish Ministers to create regulations to allow for an enforcement officer to issue a FPN where they are satisfied that an individual or business has committed an offence in regulations made prohibiting or restricting the use, sale or supply of environmentally harmful items. The fixed penalty must not exceed level 3 on the standard scale (currently £1,000 – see section 225 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995).
123.Inserted subsection (10C) allows for regulations to provide for the amount of the fixed penalty to vary in different cases; to require persons to whom a notice is given to provide their name, address and date of birth; and to create offences for failure to comply with such a requirement subject to a maximum penalty of level 3 on the standard scale (currently £1,000 – see section 225 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995).
124.Inserted subsection (10D) requires regulations to require certain information on the face of the FPN, including the circumstances of the alleged offence; the amount of the fixed penalty and any relevant discount; the period during which it must be paid; and the effect of paying or not paying the penalty.