Office Premises Act, 1958

Powers of inspectors.

28.—(1) An inspector shall, for the purposes of the execution of this Act, have power to do all or any of the following things, that is to say—

(a) to enter, inspect and examine at all reasonable times, by day and night, an office, and every part thereof, when he has reasonable cause to believe that any person is employed therein, and to enter by day any place which he has reasonable cause to believe to be an office and any part of any building of which an office forms part and in which he has reasonable cause to believe that explosive or highly inflammable materials are stored or used;

(b) to take with him a member of the Garda Síochána if he has reasonable cause to apprehend any serious obstruction in the execution of his duty;

(c) to require the production of any documents, required to be kept in pursuance of regulations under this Act, and to inspect, examine and copy any of them;

(d) to make such examination and inquiry as may be necessary to ascertain whether the provisions of this Act and the enactments for the time being in force relating to public health are complied with, so far as respects an office and any persons employed in an office;

(e) to require any person whom he finds in an office and whom he has reasonable cause to believe to be employed in the office to give such information as it is in his power to give as to who is the occupier of the office;

(f) to examine, either alone or in the presence of any other person, as he thinks fit, with respect to matters under this Act, every person whom he finds in an office, or whom he has reasonable cause to believe to be or to have been within the preceding two months employed in an office, and to require every such person to be so examined and to sign a declaration of the truth of the matters respecting which he is so examined ;

(g) to exercise such other powers as may be necessary for carrying this Act into effect.

(2) No one shall be required by virtue of paragraph (f) of subsection (1) to answer any question or to give any evidence tending to criminate himself.

(3) The occupier of every office, his agents and servants, shall furnish the means required by an inspector as necessary for any entry, inspection, examination, inquiry or other power under this Act, in relation to that office.

(4) If any person wilfully delays an inspector in the exercise of any power under this section, or fails to comply with the requisition of an inspector in pursuance of this section, or to produce any document which he is required in pursuance of regulations under this Act to produce, or wilfully withholds any information as to who is the occupier of any office, or conceals or prevents, or attempts to conceal or prevent, a person from appearing before or being examined by an inspector, that person shall be deemed to obstruct an inspector in the execution of his duties under this Act.

(5) Where an inspector is obstructed in the execution of his powers or duties under this Act—

(a) if the obstruction is in an office, the occupier, and, if the person obstructing the inspector is not the occupier, also the person obstructing the inspector, shall be guilty of an offence ;

(b) in any other case, the person obstructing the inspector shall be guilty of an offence.