Member

Secondly, to use the law in circumstances that offend the common sense of the ordinary citizen brings the whole body of criminal law into serious disrepute. The spectacle of the elderly and retired being arrested in the circumstances we have all witnessed for allegedly terrorist acts clearly has such an effect. Then consider the consequences for the individual concerned if convicted of an offence under Section 12. The penalties are as follows: on indictment, a term of imprisonment not exceeding 14 years, or a fine, or both; on a summary conviction, imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum, or both.