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the net so wide that one is left to wonder what purpose is served by sub-s (2), for
it is difficult to think of any behaviour aimed at defrauding the customs and excise

that would not be caught by sub-s (1). However, sub-s (2) has consistently

appeared in similar form in a succession of Customs and Excise Acts as the final
and sweeping up provision: see the Customs Consolidation Act 1853, s 232, the

Customs Consolidation Act 1876, s 186 and the Customs and Excise Act 1952, s
304(b).

We are satisfied that it was inserted by the draftsman with the intention of casting
his net as widely as words enabled him (note his language), 'in any person' and

'in any way'. This was the view of Lord Salmon expressed in DPP v Doot [1973] 1
All ER 940 at 954, [1973] AC 807 at 830-831. Lord Salmon was discussing the

construction of the Customs and Excise Act 1952, but for all material purposes
that is re-enacted in similar language in the present Act. He said:

'Section 304 [and I interpolate to say that that is the equivalent of s 170 of

the 1979 Act] is obviously a long stop for ss 45 and 56 to catch anyone
against whom actual importing, exporting or being concerned in actual

importing or exporting cannot be proved although no doubt it is wide
enough to cover importing and exporting also.'”

Another important element of the offences is that concerning the phrases “a fraudulent

evasion” and “a fraudulent attempt at evasion”. With this in mind, in Attorney General’s

Reference (No. 1 of 1981) [1982] 2 All ER 417, the Court gave the following guidance:

“In the result we have come to the conclusion that the presence of the word

‘fraudulent’ in s 170(2) of the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979 has the
effect that, in prosecutions under that provision for fraudulent evasion or

attempted evasion of a prohibition or restriction with respect to goods or duty
chargeable thereon, the prosecution must prove fraudulent conduct in the sense of

dishonest conduct deliberately intended to evade the prohibition or restriction
with respect to, or the duty chargeable on, goods as the case may be. There is no

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