criminal-law england-and-wales trespass arrest prosecution
What exactly is prohibited in a &#39;prohibited place&#39; under the Official Secrets Act?
<p>Last summer, I drove past RAF Spadeadam in the north of England. I passed the following rather foreboding sign:</p>
<p><a href="https://i.stack.imgur.com/EiQhc.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.stack.imgur.com/EiQhc.jpg" alt="enter image description here" /></a></p>
<blockquote>
<p>Ministry of Defence</p>
<p>This is a prohibited place within the meaning of the Official Secrets Act. Unauthorised persons entering this area may be arrested and prosecuted</p>
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<p>There were no fences or other barrier stopping people from entering the area, and indeed several were doing so in order to swim in a nearby waterfall.</p>
<p>Is - as the sign implies - the mere act of entering the area enough to be arrested and charged with a crime, or do you have to be undertaking some sort of illicit activity within the area?</p>

<p>There are several <em>Official Secrets Act</em>s that are in force in the U.K. The one relevant for your question is the <em>Official Secrets Act 1911</em>. See <a href="https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Geo5/1-2/28/section/3" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Section 3</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>For the purposes of this Act, the expression “prohibited place” means ... any work of defence, arsenal, naval or air force establishment or station, factory, dockyard, mine, minefield, camp, ship, or aircraft belonging to or occupied by or on behalf of His Majesty ... [and there are other things that can be prohibited places, including places declared by order]</p>
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<p>To be in violation of the Act, it is not enough to merely be in the area. See <a href="https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Geo5/1-2/28/section/1" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Section 1</a>:</p>
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<p>If any person for <strong>any purpose prejudicial to the safety or interests of the State</strong>... approaches, inspects, passes over or is in the neighbourhood of, or enters any prohibited place within the meaning of this Act... he shall be guilty of felony</p>
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<p>There is a bill before Parliament that would redefine prohibited place (but still capturing the base you have photographed) and create additional offences in relation to prohibited places. See <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-security-bill-factsheets/prohibited-places-national-security-bill-2022-factsheet" rel="nofollow noreferrer">this factsheet</a> and the <a href="https://bills.parliament.uk/publications/48578/documents/2476" rel="nofollow noreferrer">current text of the bill</a>. Importantly, Section 5 would create a new offence of &quot;unauthorized entry etc to a prohibited place,&quot; which would make it an offence to access a prohibited place without authorization while knowing (or while one reasonably should have known) that the access was unauthorized. No purpose prejudicial to the U.K. would be required. However, given the lesser severity of the wrong, the maximum punishment would be six months in prison or a fine.</p>
