Part 5 – Miscellaneous Reports on payments to governments Section 212: Reports on payments to governments regulations: false statement offence
The Reports on Payments to Governments Regulations (SI 2014/3209) require large businesses in the UK extractive industries to make annual reports on payments they make to overseas governments related to these activities. Section 212 amends these Regulations to update and bring their structure of false statement offences into line with the Section 102 amendments to section 1112 of the Companies Act 2006. The objective is to provide consistency and clarity to businesses. Accordingly, Section 212 substitutes Regulation 16 of the Reports on Payments to Governments Regulations with new regulations 16 and 16A, which amend the false statement offence to change the threshold to be met for its commission, by splitting it into two separate offences.
	The new regulation 16, "False Statements: basic offence" of the Reports on Payments to Governments Regulations introduces a new offence, called the "basic offence" which is committed when a person, without reasonable excuse, makes a materially false, misleading or deceptive statement in the course of reporting for the purposes of these regulations. The new regulation 16A, "False Statements Aggravated Offence" introduces a second new offence, called the "aggravated offence", which is committed when a person knowingly makes a materially false statement in the course of reporting.
	The new regulations 16 and 16A paragraphs (2) – (4) confirm that, where these are committed by a firm, every officer of the firm which is in default be liable; that the definition of "firm" matches Companies Act 2006 Section 1173(1); and that this provision is operated according to the Companies Act 2006 Sections 1121 to 1123 (liability of officers default: interpretation etc.).
	The new regulations 16 and 16A of the Reports on Payments to Governments Regulations set new graduated penalties across the "basic" and "aggravated offences". The penalties are more severe for the latter offence and reflect the level of offences introduced in amended section 1112 and 1112A.
	The new regulation 16 paragraph (5) and 16A paragraph (5) set out the level of penalties for each of the offences, which are stiffer for persons guilty of the "aggravated offence" in regulation 16A.
	The Reports on Payments to Governments Regulations, as they are drafted, provide that that no prosecutions should be brought for an offence under these regulations in England and Wales except with the consent of the Secretary of State or the Director of Public Prosecution, or in Northern Ireland except with the consent of the Secretary of State or the Director of Public Prosecutions for Northern Ireland. These arrangements are to ensure that any prosecutions mounted are in the public interest. The new regulations 16 and 16A (paragraph (6) in both cases) confirm that this arrangement is unchanged in relation to any proceedings mounted either in relation to either of the new offences.