20.— (1) Where an authorised person is satisfied that—

(a) in relation to a dog breeding establishment there has been a contravention of this Act or a condition attaching to the registration of that dog breeding establishment in the register maintained by the local authority in whose functional area the dog breeding establishment is situated, or

(b) that a dog breeding establishment is being maintained in a manner that poses or is likely to pose a threat to public health or animal welfare,

the F6[authorised person] may serve a notice (in this Act referred to as an “improvement notice”) on the operator of the establishment.

(2) An improvement notice shall—

(a) state the grounds for the authorised person’s being satisfied that there has been a contravention referred to in paragraph (a) of subsection (1) or that the dog breeding establishment concerned is being maintained in a manner referred to in paragraph (b) of that subsection,

(b) require the operator of the dog breeding establishment concerned to take such measures as are specified in the notice to cease the contravention, or avoid or prevent the threat concerned,

(c) specify the period within which those measures shall be taken,

(d) state that if the measures concerned are not taken within the period so specified an application will be made to the District Court to have the dog breeding establishment removed from the register, and

(e) inform the operator of the dog breeding establishment that he or she may appeal the improvement notice to the District Court in accordance with this section.

(3) The operator of a dog breeding establishment upon whom an improvement notice is served may, not later than 7 days from the service of the notice (or such longer period as the District Court may, for good and sufficient reason, determine) appeal the notice to a judge of the District Court sitting in the district court district in which the dog breeding establishment concerned is situated.

(4) Upon an appeal under this section, a judge of the District Court may—

(a) affirm the notice,

(b) revoke the notice, or

(c) revoke the notice and order the operator of the dog breeding establishment concerned to comply with such directions as may be given by the judge.

(5) An improvement notice in respect of which an appeal is brought under this section shall not have effect pending the making of an order under subsection (4), if the judge of the District Court before whom the appeal is brought so directs.

(6) A local authority may withdraw an improvement notice under this section.

(7) In this section “authorised person” means a person appointed to be an authorised person pursuant to section 18(1)(a).