18.— (1) In this section “inspector” means a person appointed under subsection (2).

(2) The Minister may, in writing, appoint as many persons as the Minister thinks appropriate to be inspectors for the purposes of this Act.

(3) Subject to this section, an inspector may do all or any of the following things for the purposes of this Act—

(a) enter at all reasonable times any premises or place where the inspector believes on reasonable grounds that—

(i) an employee is employed in work, or

(ii) the work that an employee is employed to do is directed or controlled,

(b) make such examination or enquiry as may be necessary for ascertaining whether this Act is being complied with in respect of an employee employed in those premises or that place or an employee whose work is directed or controlled from the premises or place,

(c) require the employer of an employee, or the representative of the employer, to produce to the inspector any records the employer is required to keep under any other enactment that are relevant to the employer’s obligations under this Act and inspect and take copies of entries in the records (including, in the case of information in a non-legible form, a copy of or an extract from that information in a more permanent legible form),

(d) require any person the inspector believes on reasonable grounds to be or to have been an employee or the employer of an employee to furnish such information to the inspector as the inspector may reasonably request,

(e) examine with regard to any matters under this Act any person the inspector has reasonable cause to believe to be or to have been an employer or employee and require the person to answer such questions (other than questions tending to incriminate the person) as the inspector may put relative to those matters and to sign a declaration of the truth of the answers.

(4) An inspector shall not, except with the consent of the occupier, enter a private dwelling (other than a part of the dwelling used as a place of work) unless he or she has obtained a warrant from the District Court under subsection (7) authorising the entry.

(5) Where an inspector in attempting to exercise his or her powers under this section is prevented from entering any premises, he or she may apply under subsection (7) for a warrant authorising the entry.

(6) An inspector, where he or she considers it necessary to be so accompanied, may be accompanied by a member of the Garda Síochána when exercising a power conferred on an inspector under this section.

(7) If a judge of the District Court is satisfied on the sworn information of an inspector that there are reasonable grounds for suspecting that information required by an inspector under this section is held on any premises or any part of the premises, the judge may issue a warrant authorising an inspector accompanied by other inspectors or a member of the Garda Síochána, at any time or times within one month from the date of issue of the warrant, on production, if so requested, of the warrant, to enter the premises (if need be by the use of reasonable force) and exercise all or any of the powers conferred on an inspector under subsection (3).

(8) A person who—

(a) obstructs or impedes an inspector in the exercise of any of the powers conferred on an inspector under this section,

(b) refuses to produce a record which an inspector lawfully requires the person to produce,

(c) produces or causes to be produced, or knowingly allows to be produced, to an inspector a record which is false or misleading in a material respect, knowing it to be so false or misleading,

(d) gives to an inspector information which is false or misleading in a material respect knowing it to be so false or misleading, or

(e) fails or refuses to comply with a lawful requirement of an inspector under subsection (3),

is guilty of an offence.

(9) Every inspector shall be furnished by the Minister with a certificate of his or her appointment and, on applying for admission to any premises or place for the purposes of this Act, shall, if requested by a person affected, produce the certificate or a copy of the certificate to that person.