22.—(1) In any proceedings for an offence under this Act, it shall not be necessary to negative by evidence the existence of any—

(a) order made under section 2 F37[or 3] of this Act,

(b) licence, permit or authorisation under this Act,

and accordingly the onus of proving the existence of any such licence, permit or authorisation shall be on the person seeking to avail himself thereof.

(2) In any proceedings for an offence under this Act it shall not be necessary for the prosecutor to prove that at the time of the offence—

(a) a defendant was not a person to whom regulations made under section 4 of this Act applied,

(b) a defendant was a person to whom an exception under regulations made under section 5 of this Act applied, and

in case a defendant claims that—

(i) by virtue of the said section 4 he had lawfully in his possession a controlled drug,

(ii) he is a person to whom such an exception applied,

the onus of proving such lawful possession, or that he is such a person, as may be appropriate, shall be on the defendant.