New South Wales Consolidated Acts

ESSENTIAL SERVICES ACT 1988 - SECT 14

14 Obstruction etc of inspectors

(1) A person shall not--

(a) prevent an inspector from exercising any function conferred on the inspector under section 13, or

(b) hinder or obstruct an inspector in the exercise of any such functions, or

(c) refuse or fail to comply with any reasonable requirement or answer any question of an inspector, or

(d) furnish an inspector with information knowing that it is false or misleading in a material particular, or

(e) impersonate an inspector.

: Maximum penalty--10 penalty units.

(2) It is a sufficient defence to a prosecution for an offence under subsection (1) (c) by reason of the failure of the defendant to answer a question of an inspector under section 13 if the defendant proves that the defendant did not know, and could not with reasonable diligence ascertain, the answer to the question.

(3) A person is not excused from answering any question of an inspector under section 13 on the ground that the answer might tend to incriminate the person or make the person liable to a penalty, but the information furnished by the person is not admissible against the person in any proceedings, civil or criminal, except for an offence under subsection (1).

(4) If--

(a) an answer to a question of an inspector under section 13, or

(b) any information whatever,

is given to an inspector by an officer of a corporation within the meaning of the Corporations Act 2001 of the Commonwealth, the answer and information are, for the purposes of any proceedings against the corporation under this Act, binding on and admissible in evidence against the corporation.

(5) Subsection (4) does not apply if it is proved that the answer or information was given in relation to a matter in respect of which the officer had no authority to bind the corporation.