Section 14

Subject to the provisions of this Part, if any person releases or allows to escape into the wild any animal which— he shall be guilty of an offence. is of a kind which is not ordinarily resident in and is not a regular visitor to Great Britain in a wild state; or is included in Part I, IA or IB of Schedule 9, Subject to the provisions of this Part, if any person plants or otherwise causes to grow in the wild any plant which is included in Part II of Schedule 9, he shall be guilty of an offence. Subject to subsection (4), it shall be a defence to a charge of committing an offence under subsection (1) or (2) to prove that the accused took all reasonable steps and exercised all due diligence to avoid committing the offence. Where the defence provided by subsection (3) involves an allegation that the commission of the offence was due to the act or default of another person, the person charged shall not, without leave of the court, be entitled to rely on the defence unless, within a period ending seven clear days before the hearing, he has served on the prosecutor a notice giving such information identifying or assisting in the identification of the other person as was then in his possession. Subsection (1)(a) does not apply to species included on the list of species in the Annex to Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2016/1141 adopting a list of invasive alien species of Union concern pursuant to Regulation (EU) No. 1143/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council, as amended from time to time. Schedule 9A contains provision about species control agreements and orders and related matters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Source: legislation.gov.uk · retrieved 2026-07-30