Commentary on Sections Part 2: Sustainability and Renewable Energy Sources Chapter 2: Offshore Production of Energy Section 86: Prosecutions
242.This section makes provision for the prosecution of criminal offences which might have been committed on, under or above a renewable energy installation in tidal waters, the territorial sea or the Renewable Energy Zone or on, under or above such of these waters that at the time of the alleged offence were within a safety zone. It excludes offences created by or under a number of statutes which have their own prosecuting regimes. The section provides that the consent of the Director of Public Prosecutions or the Director of Public Prosecutions for Northern Ireland is required before proceedings for an offence are brought in England and Wales, and Northern Ireland respectively. No provision is necessary in respect of Scotland as the consent of the Lord Advocate is needed for all prosecutions.