KEIFCA Compliance and Enforcement Strategy

 Our approach to prosecutions is in line with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs' Enforcement Policy Statement, the Code for Crown Prosecutors and the Marine Management Organistaions' Compliance and Enforcement Strategy.

We published our KEIFCA Compliance and Enforcement Strategy in January 2012.

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Emergency Byelaw Procedure

 

Background Defra guidance

The Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 requires an IFCA to notify the Secretary of State directly within 24 hours of making the emergency byelaw. The IFCA should also send a copy of that byelaw to the MMO. Prior to making the emergency byelaw, the IFCA should have sufficient evidence to assess the need for these measures, however the precautionary principle can be applied where appropriate. Relevant stakeholders will also have been informally consulted, as necessary. This evidence will form part of the initial Impact Assessment. Once the emergency byelaw has been made, the IFCA should advertise the emergency byelaw to ensure that anybody affected by the emergency byelaw has the opportunity to comply. If stakeholders wish to comment on an Emergency byelaw they should inform the IFCA and the MMO, who will consider their concerns.

 

The IFCA should continually review whether the emergency byelaw should remain in place. This should include a full IA and consultation to review whether the emergency byelaw should be replaced with a permanent byelaw. Should the IFCA wish to extend the period during which the emergency byelaw remains in force, it should submit the case for extending it to the MMO, explaining why the extension is needed and providing evidence of activity by the IFCA to put a permanent byelaw in place.

 

The IFCA should submit the request for the extension to the MMO at least 8 weeks before the expiry of the 12 month period of the initial emergency byelaw. This is to allow sufficient time for the request to be reviewed for suitability for signing by the Secretary of State. If the MMO is satisfied that the extension can be justified, they will make recommendations to the Secretary of State to grant the extension.

 

 

 

K&EIFCA will give consideration to introducing an Emergency Byelaw by the following procedure:

Consideration will be triggered either by information gathered by K&EIFCA officers or reports from stakeholders. Stakeholders and K&EIFCA officers would be asked to fill in a form covering the following topics:

• Background on who they are and their organisation/ mandate
• Describes the current activity and gives an indication of level of activity (current and perceived ongoing)
• Describes the impact of that activity in relation to the sustainable exploitation of marine species and/or impact on MPA feature?
• Explanation of why the need to make the byelaw could not reasonably have been foreseen.
• Give a brief review of any efforts made to deal with the issue in a non-legislative way.
• Suggestion on the possible wording of an emergency byelaw.

 

After the appropriate form had been submitted, the Chief Officer will consult the Chairman and Vice Chairman and discuss the merits of the application based on the defra emergency byelaw guidance.   The decision will then be made to continue with the process and gather information for an initial impact assessment or to write back to the stakeholder involved and explain why no further action will be taken. Legal advice might be taken at this point.

 

K&EIFCA Officers will gather information regarding the issue in question and complete an initial impact assessment. An initial impact assessment would aim review the following issues, depending on time available:

 

• Summary of why this new activity is taking place and what is motivating parties to undertake the new activity. Explanation of why the need to make the byelaw could not reasonably have been foreseen.
• Summarise any current legal powers relating to this activity.
• Where possible K&EIFCA officers would gather and record first hand data about activity levels (e.g number of people/ boats/ amount of gear involved).Records would also be made of stakeholder’s estimates of activity.
• Where possible information would be gathered by K&EIFCA officers aimed at quantifying the amount of damage/impact taking place by the activity.
• A comparison would be made of current activity and impacts with previous activity/impacts.
• Estimate of future impact on species or feature if action is not taken (if activity continues at current level).
• Give a brief review of any efforts made to deal with the issue in a non-legislative way.
• Suggestion on the possible wording of an emergency byelaw.
• Estimated cost on sectors undertaking activity if activity is stopped using the suggested byelaw wording.
• Estimated cost of enforcement of emergency byelaw using the suggested byelaw wording.
• If time allowed brief comments on the activity would then be sort from other relevant bodies and stakeholders (e.g. MMO, NE, CEFAS, and epresentatives of sectors affected, local councils and possibly the EA).

This will result in one of the following:

1. Proceeding with an Emergency Byelaw. If an Emergency Byelaw is implemented immediately, the action will be reported to the next K&EIFCA meeting for ratification.
2. Call a special meeting of the Technical Panel or a full K&EIFCA meeting.
3. Take no immediate action but report to the next scheduled K&EIFCA meeting (writing back to the organisation or individual initially requesting the emergency byelaw with an explanation why this has not been taken forward).

If actions 1 or 2 are undertaken the Chief Officer will consult the Chairman and Vice Chairman in drawing up the initial wording of the emergency byelaw.

Once agreement had been reached to proceed with an emergency byelaw and the wording of the byelaw had been finalised, the timings and actions written in the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 would be followed. This will be accompanied by on-going monitoring and reporting as referred to in the previous sections.