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Suppression of Terrorism Act 1978
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- 1978 c. 26
- Section 4
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4 Jurisdiction in respect of offences committed outside United Kingdom.U.K.
(1)If a person, whether a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies or not, does in a convention country any act which, if he had done it in a part of the United Kingdom, would have made him guilty in that part of the United Kingdom of—
(a)an offence mentioned in paragraph 1, 2, 4, 5, 10, F1. . . [F211B,]12, 13, 14 or 15 of Schedule 1 to this Act; or
(b)an offence of attempting to commit any offence so mentioned,
he shall, in that part of the United Kingdom, be guilty of the offence or offences aforesaid of which the act would have made him guilty if he had done it there.
F3(2). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(3)If a person who is a national of a convention country but not a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies does outside the United Kingdom and that convention country any act which makes him in that convention country guilty of an offence and which, if he had been a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies, would have made him in any part of the United Kingdom guilty of an offence mentioned in paragraph 1, 2 or 13 of Schedule 1 to this Act, he shall, in any part of the United Kingdom, be guilty of the offence or offences aforesaid of which the act would have made him guilty if he had been such a citizen.
(4)Proceedings for an offence which [F4(disregarding the provisons of the M1Internationally Protected Persons Act 1978) [F5, the Nuclear Material (Offences) Act 1983 [F6, the United Nations Personnel Act 1997 and the Terrorism Act 2000]]] would not be an offence apart from this section shall not be instituted—
(a)in Northern Ireland, except by or with the consent of the Attorney General for Northern Ireland; or
(b)in England and Wales, except by or with the consent of the Attorney General;
F7. . .
(5)Without prejudice to any jurisdiction exercisable apart from this subsection, every sheriff court in Scotland shall have jurisdiction to entertain proceedings for an offence which [F4(disregarding the provisions of the M2Internationally Protected Persons Act 1978 [F5and the Nuclear Material (Offences) Act 1983 [F6, the United Nations Personnel Act 1997 and the Terrorism Act 2000]])]would not be an offence in Scotland apart from this section.
F3(6). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(7)For the purposes of this section any act done—
(a)on board a ship registered in a convention country, being an act which, if the ship had been registered in the United Kingdom, would have constituted an offence within the jurisdiction of the Admiralty; or
(b)on board an aircraft registered in a convention country while the aircraft is in flight elsewhere than in or over that country; or
(c)on board a hovercraft registered in a convention country while the hovercraft is in journey elsewhere than in or over that country,
shall be treated as done in that convention country; [F8and subsection (4) of section 92 of the Civil Aviation Act 1982 (definition of ’in flight’ or, as applied to hovercraft, ’in journey’) shall apply for the purposes of this subsection as it applies for the purposes of that section.]
Textual Amendments
F1Word in s. 4(1)(a) repealed (1.5.2004) by Sexual Offences Act 2003 (c. 42), ss. 140, 141, Sch. 7; S.I. 2004/874, art. 2
F2Figure inserted by Child Abduction Act 1984 (c. 37, SIF 39:4), s. 11(4)
F3S. 4(2)(6) repealed by Internationally Protected Persons Act 1978 (c. 17), s. 5(4)(a)(5)
F4Words inserted by Internationally Protected Persons Act 1978 (c. 17), s. 5(4)(b)(5)
F5Words substituted (27.4.1997) by virtue of 1997 c. 13, ss. 7, 10(2), Sch. para. 3.
F6Words in s. 4(4)(5) substituted (26.4.2004) by Crime (International Co-operation) Act 2003 (c. 32), ss. 91(1), 94, Sch. 5 para. 4; S.I. 2004/786, art. 3(2)
F7Words in s. 4(4) repealed (12.4.2010) by Justice (Northern Ireland) Act 2002 (c. 26), ss. 86, 87, Sch. 13; S.R. 2010/113, art. 2, Sch. para. 21(j)
F8Words substituted by Civil Aviation Act 1982 (c. 16, SIF 9) s. 109, Sch. 15 para. 21
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