Office of Public Sector Information
CONTROL OF PRODUCTION AND USE OF ATOMIC ENERGY AND PUBLICATION OF INFORMATION
(1)The Minister may by order provide for prohibiting, except under the authority of a licence granted by the Minister,—
(a)the working of any minerals specified in the order, being minerals from which in the opinion of the Minister any of the prescribed substances can be obtained;
(b)the acquisition, production, treatment, possession, use, disposal, export or import,
(i)of any of the prescribed substances; or
(ii)of any minerals specified in the order, being minerals from which in the opinion of the Minister any of the prescribed substances can be obtained and not being minerals in a natural state or contained in a deposit of waste material obtained from any underground or surface working; or
(iii)of any plant designed or adapted for the production or use of atomic energy or for research into matters connected therewith;
and any such order may contain such incidental and supplementary provisions as the Minister considers necessary.
(2)The Minister shall secure so far as practicable, by the issue of licences in such cases or classes of cases as he thinks fit, that such minerals, substances and plant as aforesaid are available for purposes of research and education, for medical and biological purposes and for commercial purposes not involving the production or use of atomic energy.
(3)An order made under this section may provide for the seizure of any article in respect of which there are reasonable grounds for suspecting that a contravention of the order has been committed, and for the retention of any such article pending the institution and final determination of proceedings in respect of the contravention, and for the disposal, if the proceedings lead finally to a conviction, of any such article.
(4)Any person who contravenes or fails to comply with an order made under this section or any condition subject to which a licence was granted under this section shall be guilty of an offence under this Act.
C1S. 10 excluded by Atomic Energy Authority Act 1954 (c. 32), s. 6(4), Sch. 3
(1)Subject to the provisions of this section, any person who without the consent of the Minister communicates to any other person except an authorised person any document, drawing, photograph, plan, model or other information whatsoever which to his knowledge describes, represents or illustrates—
(a)any existing or proposed plant used or proposed to be used for the purpose of producing or using atomic energy;
(b)the purpose or method of operation of any such existing or proposed plant; or
(c)any process operated or proposed to be operated in any such existing or proposed plant;
shall be guilty of an offence under this Act:
Provided that it shall not be such an offence to communicate information with respect to any plant of a type in use for purposes other than the production or use of atomic energy, unless the information discloses that plant of that type is used or proposed to be used for the production or use of atomic energy.
In this subsection “authorised person” means, in relation to information on any subject to which this subsection applies, a person to whom, by virtue of a general authority granted by the Minister, information on that subject may be communicated.
(2)The Minister shall not withhold consent under the last foregoing subsection, if he is satisfied that the information proposed to be communicated is not of importance for purposes of defence.
(3)The Minister may by order grant exemption from this section in such classes of cases, and to such extent and subject to such conditions, as may be specified in the order.
(4)Where any information has been made available to the general public otherwise than in contravention of this section, any subsequent communication of that information shall not constitute an offence under this Act.
C1S. 11 excluded by Atomic Energy Authority Act 1954 (c. 32), s. 6(4), Sch. 3
(1)—(4) . . . F1
(5). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F2
(6), (7) . . . F1
[F3(8)The power of the Minister of Supply and persons authorised by the Minister of Supply under section forty-six of the M1Patents Act 1949 shall include power to make, use, exercise or vend an invention for such purposes relating to the production or use of atomic energy or research into matters connected therewith as the Minister thinks necessary or expedient, and any reference in that section or in sections forty-seven and forty-eight of that Act to the services of the Crown shall be construed as including a reference to those purposes.]
Atomic Energy Act 1946