12A.— F40[(1) The Minister may make regulations for any or all of the following purposes:

(a) for prescribing the requirements to be complied with in the case of any apparatus to which this section applies if the apparatus is to be used;

(b) for prescribing the requirements to be complied with in the case of any apparatus to which this section applies if the apparatus is to be sold otherwise than for export, or offered or advertised for sale otherwise than for export, or let on hire or offered or advertised for letting on hire by any person who in the course of business manufactures, assembles or imports such apparatus;

(c) for prescribing the requirements to be complied with in the case of any apparatus to which this section applies if the apparatus is to be sold for export to a country or territory which is for the time being declared under this section by the Minister to be a country or territory to which this paragraph applies or offered or advertised for such sale, by any person mentioned in paragraph (b) of this subsection.]

(2) The said requirements shall be such requirements as the Minister thinks fit for the purpose of ensuring that the use of the apparatus does not cause undue interference with wireless telegraphy, and may in particular include—

(a) requirements as to the maximum intensity of electro-magnetic energy of any specified frequencies which may be radiated in any direction from the apparatus while it is being used; and

(b) in the case of an apparatus the power for which is supplied from electric lines, requirements as to the maximum electro-magnetic energy of any specified frequencies which may be injected into those lines by the apparatus, and, in so far as appears to the Minister necessary or expedient in the case of the regulations in question, different requirements may be prescribed for different circumstances and in relation to different classes or descriptions of apparatus, different districts or places and different times of use.

(3) The apparatus to which this section applies shall be such apparatus as may be specified in the regulations made thereunder, being apparatus generating, or designed to generate, or liable to generate fortuitously, electro-magnetic energy at frequencies of not more than three million megacycles per F41[second. The references in this subsection to apparatus include references to apparatus for wireless telegraphy and references to any form of electric line.].

The references in this subsection to apparatus include references to any form of electric line.

(4) Where the Minister proposes to make regulations under this section—

(a) he shall cause a draft of the proposed regulations to be prepared and shall cause the draft to be published and placed on sale by the Stationery Office,

(b) he shall give notice to the public, in such manner as he considers suitable, of his intention to make the regulations,

(c) the notice shall contain an intimation that copies of the draft of the regulations are available for purchase and that, during a specified period of not less than two months, representations suggesting variations of the draft may be made to the Minister.

(5) Regulations under this section shall not be made until after the expiration of the period for making representations specified in the relevant notice under paragraph (b) of subsection (4) of this section and the Minister shall consider any representations made to him pursuant to the notice.

(6) (a) The Minister may appoint an advisory committee or advisory committees to advise him in relation to the making of regulations under this section and in relation to the consideration of representations referred to in the foregoing subsection.

(b) A committee under this subsection shall consist of so many members (not being less than three) as the Minister considers proper.

(c) A member of a committee under this subsection shall, unless he previously dies or resigns, retain his membership of the committee for the period determined by the Minister when appointing him and no longer, but shall be eligible for re-appointment.

(d) A committee under this subsection shall meet whenever summoned by the Minister.

(7) Whenever the Minister is of opinion that a person is working or using apparatus not complying with the requirements applicable to it under regulations made for the purposes specified in paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of this section, he may serve on or send by registered post to such person a notice—

(a) requiring such person to take such steps (including where necessary the complete stoppage of the working or user of the apparatus) as shall be specified in the notice to terminate the relevant undue interference with wireless telegraphy, and

(b) requiring such person to take the said steps either—

(i) forthwith in a case in which the Minister is of opinion that the relevant undue interference with wireless telegraphy consists of or includes undue interference with wireless telegraphy used for the purposes of any safety of life service or any purpose on which the safety of any person or of any vessel, aircraft or vehicle may depend, and

(ii) in any other case, within a period (not being less than seven days) specified in the notice.

(8) (a) Where—

(i) a notice under subsection (7) of this section has been served on or sent to a person and the notice requires the complete stoppage forthwith of the working or user of apparatus, and

(ii) such person works or uses the apparatus,

such person shall be guilty of an offence.

(b) Where—

(i) a notice under subsection (7) of this section has been served on or sent to a person and the notice requires the complete stoppage, within a specified period, of the working or user of apparatus, and

(ii) such person works or uses the apparatus after the expiration of that period,

such person shall be guilty of an offence.

(c) Where—

(i) a notice under subsection (7) of this section has been served on or sent to a person and the notice requires the taking forthwith of steps to terminate undue interference with wireless telegraphy by any apparatus (not being steps consisting of the complete stoppage of the working or user of the apparatus), and

(ii) such person works or uses the apparatus without having taken the said steps,

such person shall be guilty of an offence.

(d) Where—

(i) a notice under subsection (7) of this section has been served on or sent to a person and the notice requires the taking, within a specified period, of steps to terminate undue interference with wireless telegraphy by any apparatus (not being steps consisting of the complete stoppage of the working or user of the apparatus), and

(ii) such person works or uses the apparatus without having taken the said steps,

such person shall be guilty of an offence.

F40[(9) Whenever the Minister is of the opinion that any apparatus does not comply with the requirements applicable to it under regulations under this section for the purposes specified in paragraphs (b) or (c) of subsection (1) of this section—

(a) in case the Minister is of the opinion that the apparatus does not comply with the requirements applicable to it under regulations so made for the purposes specified in the said paragraph (b), he may serve on or send by registered post to any person who has manufactured or imported the apparatus in the course of business a notice prohibiting the person, as from the expiration of a period (not being less than seven days) specified in the notice, from selling the apparatus, otherwise than for export, or offering or advertising it for such sale, or letting it on hire or advertising it for letting on hire,

(b) in case the Minister is of the opinion that the apparatus does not comply with the requirements applicable to it under regulations so made for the purposes specified in the said paragraph (c), he may serve on or so send to any person who has manufactured or exported the apparatus in the course of business a notice prohibiting the person, as from the expiration of a period (not being less than seven days) specified in the notice, from selling the apparatus for export to the countries or territories specified in the relevant regulations under this section, or offering or advertising it for such sale,

and in any such case requiring the person within such a period so specified,—

(i) to make the apparatus available for inspection by an officer of the Minister and authorised by him, or in case an order made under subsection (14) of this section is for the time being in force, an officer or servant of the Authority or any other body specified in the order and authorised by the Authority or the other body, as may be appropriate, to make the inspection,

(ii) if requested by such officer or servant to transport, at the expense of the person, to a place specified by the officer or servant a sample or samples (which such officer or servant is hereby empowered to select) of the apparatus, or of any part of the apparatus specified by such officer or servant, for testing pursuant to subsection (9A) of this section.]

F42[(9A) Where apparatus or any other thing is transported pursuant to a request made under subsection (9) of this section, the apparatus or other thing may be subjected by the person by whom the request was made or by any other officer or servant of the Minister, the Authority or the other body, as may be appropriate, to tests for the purpose of ascertaining whether or not the apparatus or other thing complies with the requirements applicable to it under the relevant regulations under this section.]

(10) Where—

(a) a notice under subsection (9) of this section has been served on or sent to a person, and

F40[(b) after the expiration of the period specified in the notice, such person contravenes the provisions, or fails to comply with the requirements, of the notice,]

such person shall be guilty of an offence.

(11) (a) A Justice of the District Court may, upon information on oath of an officer of the Minister or of a member of the Garda Síochána that there is reasonable ground for believing that, at any specified place, apparatus to which this section applies is to be found which does not comply with the requirements applicable to it under regulations made under this section, grant to such officer of the Minister or (with the consent of the Minister) to such member of the Garda Síochána a search warrant which shall be expressed and shall operate to authorise the officer of the Minister or member of the Garda Síochána to whom it is granted to enter, and if need be by force, the place named in the said information and there to search for apparatus to which this section applies and to examine and test all such apparatus there found.

(b) A search warrant granted under this subsection to an officer of the Minister may authorise or, if the Justice granting it so thinks proper, require such officer to be accompanied by one or more members of the Garda Síochána when making the search under the warrant.

(c) Where, under a warrant under this section, a person has a right to examine and test any apparatus at any place, it shall be the duty of any person who is at that place to give him any such assistance as he may reasonably require in the examination or testing of the apparatus.

(d) Any person who—

(i) obstructs any person in the exercise of the powers conferred on him by a warrant under this subsection, or

(ii) fails or refuses to give to any such person any assistance which he is under this subsection under a duty to give to him,

shall be guilty of an offence.

F43[(12) A person guilty of an offence under this section is liable—

(a) on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding €5,000, or

(b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine not exceeding €250,000.]

(13) The Minister may by order (which he may at any time revoke by a further order) declare that Radio Éireann shall have all powers appropriate for the investigation and detection of interference with wireless telegraphy apparatus for receiving only and, whenever such an order is for the time being in force,—

(a) Radio Éireann shall have those powers,

(b) subsection (2) of section 12 of this Act and subsection (7) of this section shall have effect as if each of the references therein to the Minister included a reference to Radio Éireann, and

(c) subsection (11) of this section shall have effect as if each of the references therein to the Minister included, in relation to regulations made for the purposes specified in paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of this section, a reference to Radio Éireann.]

F42[(14) The Minister may by order (which he may at any time revoke or amend by a further order) declare that the Authority or any other body specified in the order shall have all the powers which the Minister may exercise under subsection (9) of this section and, whenever such an order is for the time being in force, the Authority or the other body so specified shall have those powers and subsection (9) of this section shall have effect as if each of the references therein to the Minister included a reference to the Authority or to the other body so specified, as may be appropriate.]

F42[(15) The Minister may by regulations declare any country or territory specified in the regulations to be a country or territory to which paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of this section applies.]

F42[(16) In this section "the Authority" means Radio Telefís Éireann.]