Mr. Gerry Liston:

I fully agree but think it is important to clarify the criminal offence point because it sounds quite draconian. First, one would only be brought before the courts for importing settlement goods or providing or assisting with the provision of settlement services if one did so very knowingly. This goes back to the point about the Chair’s constituent. Someone unwittingly using a service that is in some way connected to a settlement will not ultimately be penalised. We think of criminal offences as murder and theft but it is also a criminal offence not to hold a company register in the company’s registered office. The spectrum of what is covered by the term “offence” is huge. It is a matter of ensuring rules are complied with under our legal system, not that SMEs will be appearing before the courts regularly for having breached this legislation-----