177.— (1) The Criminal Justice Act 1951 is amended by the substitution of the following section for section 7:

“Restriction of section 10(4) of Petty Sessions (Ireland) Act 1851.

7.— Paragraph 4 (which prescribes time limits for the making of complaints in cases of summary jurisdiction) of section 10 of the Petty Sessions (Ireland) Act 1851 shall not apply to a complaint in respect of:

(a) a scheduled offence, or

(b) an offence that is triable—

(i) at the election of the prosecution, either on indictment or summarily, or

(ii) either on indictment or, subject to certain conditions including the consent of the prosecution, summarily.”.

(2) This section shall not have effect in relation to an offence committed before the commencement of this section.