Part 1: Counter-terrorism Chapter 1: Terrorist offences Section 4: Entering or remaining in a designated area
Section 4 inserts new sections 58B and 58C into the 2000 Act to provide for a new offence of entering or remaining in a designated area overseas.
	Under new section 58B it will be an offence for a UK national or resident to enter or remain in an area outside the UK that has been designated in regulations made by the Secretary of State under the power in new section 58C. The offence does not apply to Crown Servants (for example, diplomatic staff or members of the armed forces) or persons acting on behalf of the Crown (for example, contractors supporting the armed forces). A designation might include airspace. There is a period of grace of one month for persons travelling to, or already present in, a designated area at the time section 58C regulations designating the area comes into force, such that if they leave the designated area within that timeframe no offence is committed. By virtue of section 117 of the 2000 Act, a prosecution for the offence in England and Wales or in Northern Ireland would require the consent of the Director of Public Prosecutions given with the consent of the Attorney General or Advocate general for Northern Ireland as the case may be. (In Scotland, all prosecutions are brought by the Lord Advocate, or on his behalf, where it is in the public interest to do so.) The maximum penalty for the offence is 10 years’ imprisonment, an unlimited fine, or both (an extended sentence may be imposed in respect of this offence – see Sections 9 to 11).
	The offence is subject to a reasonable excuse defence (new section 58B(2)). By virtue of section 118 of the 2000 Act, once a defendant has raised the defence, the burden of proof (to the criminal standard, that is beyond reasonable doubt) to disprove the defence rests with the prosecution.
	New section 58B(4) and (5) provides that a person would not commit the offence if they enter, or remain in, a designated area involuntarily, or they enter, or remain in, a designated area for one or more specified purposes, including providing aid of a humanitarian nature, carrying out work for the government of a country other than the UK, carrying out work for the United Nations or a UN agency, carrying out work as a journalist, attending a funeral of a relative and visiting a relative who is terminally ill or providing care for a relative who is unable to care for themselves without such assistance. This exhaustive list of exclusions from the offence may be amended by regulations made by the Secretary of State, subject to the draft affirmative procedure (new section 58B(7).
	The test for designating an area for the purpose of the offence is that the Secretary of State is satisfied that designation is necessary in order to protect the public from a risk of terrorism. Such a risk may arise, in particular, if a conflict in a foreign country, potentially involving a proscribed terrorist organisation, acted as a draw to UK nationals or residents to travel to that country to take part in the conflict or otherwise support those engaged in the conflict. The Secretary of State is required to keep any designation under review, and in any event a designation would lapse after three years (this is without prejudice to the Secretary of State re-designating the same area).
	Regulations made under section 58C are subject to the made affirmative procedure (this allows the regulations to come into effect immediately but they must subsequently be approved by both Houses of Parliament within 40 days of the date they are made), save where the regulations revoke previous regulations (and nothing more) in which case they are subject to the negative procedure. When designating an area by regulations, there is a duty on the Secretary of State (in practice the Home Secretary) to lay before Parliament a statement setting out the reasons why the Secretary of State considers that the condition for designation is met in relation to that area.