67Cancellation and suspension of accreditation

67 Cancellation and suspension of accreditation

(1)  The Secretary, by notice, may cancel or suspend an accreditation at any time if the Secretary believes on reasonable grounds that –

(a) the holder of the accreditation no longer requires it or can no longer demonstrate a legitimate need for it; or

(b) it is necessary or expedient to do so in the interests of State security or public safety; or

(c) the conditions of the accreditation, if any, have been contravened in a material or sustained way; or

(d) having regard to the criteria in Schedule 4 or other matters, the holder of the accreditation is no longer a fit and proper person to hold such accreditation.

(2)  However, the Secretary is not to cancel the accreditation solely on the ground referred to in subregulation (1)(b) except at the direction or with the express prior approval of the Minister administering either the Police Powers (Public Safety) Act 2005 or the Security-sensitive Dangerous Substances Act 2005 .

(3)  In deciding whether cancellation or suspension is the more appropriate course of action in the circumstances, the Secretary is to regard State security and public safety as the paramount considerations rather than the rights and convenience of the holder of the accreditation.

(4)  A notice under subregulation (1) is to inform the relevant holder of an accreditation of –

(a) the cancellation or suspension; and

(b) the reason for the cancellation or suspension; and

(c) when the cancellation or suspension takes effect; and

(d) the right of review; and

(e) in the case of suspension, any conditions that must be met before the Secretary will consider revoking the suspension.

(5)  The Secretary, by notice, may revoke the suspension of an accreditation at any time.

(6)  Except for the purposes of an application for its renewal, an accreditation has no force or effect while it is suspended.