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Home Office
Direct Communications Unit
7th Floor, 50 Queen Anne's Gate, London SWIH 9AT
Telephone: 0870 000 1585 Fax: 020 7273 2065 Textphone: 020 7273 3476
E-mail: public.enquiries@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk Web Site: www.homeoffice.gov.uk
Mr Janne Kanerva
Ministry of Justice
Law Drafting department POB 25, FIN 00023
Finland

Reference: T40008/4 Dear Mr Kannerva,

Thank you for your letter of 15 November to the Home Office. I have been asked to reply and I apologise for the delay in my doing so.

English law starts from the proposition that there is no restriction on the time which may elapse between the commission of an offence and the commencement of a prosecution for it. This applies even if the prosecutor has available to him evidence prima facie establishing the guilt of the accused for a lengthy period before he chooses to initiate proceedings. However, it should be noted that in some circumstances a lengthy delay may be regarded as an abuse of the process of the court.

Section 127 of the Magistrates' Court Act 1980 provides that, unless contrary provision is made by another statute, a magistrates' courts shall not try an information for a summary offence (i.e. an offence triable only in magistrates' court) unless it was laid within 6 month's of the offence. However, all sexual offences against children are, under the Sexual Offences Act 2003, either triable on indictment only (i.e. in the Crown Court) or triable either way. Thus there are no specific time limits provided for the prosecution of sexual offences against children.

The UK does not currently have specific penal legislation on the use of someone else's identification or similar document, in order to deceive a private individual.

However, the Identity Cards Bill published on 29 November 2004 makes provision for a national scheme of registration of individuals and for the issue of cards capable of being used for identifying registered individuals; to make it an offence for a person to be in possession or control of an identity document to which he is not entitled, or of apparatus, articles or materials for making false identity documents. The new offences are detailed in sections 27 and 28 of the Bill which is attached.

Yours sincerely

Gerry Ranson 7 January 2005

IDENTITY CARDS BILL
27 Possession of false identity documents etc. (j008]

(1) It is an offence for a person with the requisite intention to have in his possession or under his control.
(a)	an identity document that is false and that he knows or believes to be false;
(b)	an identity document that was improperly obtained and that he knows or believes to have been improperly obtained; or
(c)	an identity document that relates to someone else.

(2) The requisite intention for the purposes of subsection (1) is.
(a)	the intention of using the document for establishing registrable facts about himself; or
the intention of allowing or inducing another to use it for establishing, ascertaining or verifying registrable facts about himself or about any other person (with the exception, in the case of a document within paragraph (c) of that subsection, of the individual to whom it relates).

(3) It is an offence for a person with the requisite intention to make, or to have in his possession or under his control.
(a)	any apparatus which, to his knowledge, is or has been specially designed or adapted for the making of false identity documents; or
any article or material which, lo his knowledge, is or has been specially designed or adapted to be used in the making of false identity documents.

(4) The requisite intention for the purposes of subsection (3) is the intention.
(a)	that he or another will make a false identity document; and
(b)	that the document will be used by somebody for establishing, ascertaining or verifying registrable facts about a person.

(5) It is an offence for a person to have in his possession or under his control, without reasonable excuse.
(a)	an identity document that is false;
an identity document that was improperly obtained;
an identity document that relates to someone else; or
(d)	any apparatus, article or material which, to his knowledge, is or has been specially designed or adapted for the making of false identity documents or to be used in the making of such documents.

(6) A person guilty of an offence under subsection (1) or (3) shall be liable, on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding ten years or to a fine, or to both.

(7) A person guilty of an offence under subsection (5) shall be liable.
(a)	on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or to a fine, or to both;
(b)	on summary conviction in England and Wales, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding twelve months or to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum, or to both;

(c) on summary conviction in Scotland or Northern Ireland, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum, or to both; but, in relation to an offence committed before the commencement of section 154(1) of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (c. 44), the reference in paragraph (b) to twelve months is to be read as a reference to six months.

(8) For the purposes of this section.
(a)	an identity document is false only if it is false within the meaning of Part 1 of the Forgery and Counterfeiting Act 1981 (c. 45) (see section 9(1) of that Act); and
an identity document was improperly obtained if false information was provided, in or in connection with the application for its issue or an application for its modification, to the person who issued it or (as the case may be) to a person entitled to modify it; and references to the making of a false identity document include references to the modification of an identity document so that it becomes false.

(9) Subsection (8)(a) does not apply in the application of this section to Scotland.

(10) In this section .identity document. has the meaning given by section 28. 28 Identity documents for the purposes of s. 27 (j008A]

(1) In section 27 .identity document. means any document that is, or purports to be.
(a)	an_LDcard*
a designated document;
an immigration document;
a United Kingdom passport (within the meaning of the Immigration Act 1971 (c. 77));
(e)	a passport issued by or on behalf of the authorities of a country or territory outside the United Kingdom or by or on behalf of an international organisation;
(f)	a document that can be used (in some or all circumstances) instead of a passport;
a UK driving licence; or
(h)	a driving licence issued by or on behalf of the authorities of a country or territory outside the United Kingdom.

(2) In subsection (1) .immigration document. means.
(a)	a document used for confirming the right of a person under the Community Treaties in respect of entry or residence in the United Kingdom;
a document which is given in exercise of immigration functions and records information about leave granted to a person to enter or to remain in the United Kingdom; or
a registration card (within the meaning of section 26A of the Immigration Act 1971 (c. 77));
and in paragraph (b) immigration functions. means functions under the Immigration Acts (within the meaning of the Asylum and Immigration (Treatment of Claimants, etc.) Act 2004 (c. 19)).

(3) In that subsection .UK driving licence means (a) a licence to drive a motor vehicle granted under Part 3 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 (c. 52);
(b) a licence to drive a motor vehicle granted under Part 2 of the Road Traffic (Northern Ireland) Order 1981 (Si. 1981/154 (N.I. 1)); or

(c) a document issued as a counterpart with a licence falling within paragraph (a) or (b).
(4)	The Secretary of State may by order modify the list of documents in subsection (1).
(5)	The Secretary of State must not make an order containing (with or without other provision) any provision that he is authorised to make by subsection (4) unless a draft of the order has been laid before Parliament and approved by a resolution of each House.