R. (oao South Kesteven DC) v. Grantham Magistrates’ Court

In a prosecution for breach of an abatement notice under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 (concerning noise emanating from a marquee in the grounds of a public house), it had not been open to magistrates to find the statutory defence of best practicable means established, since there was another obvious and arguably better practicable and potentially means available to prevent or reduce the noise nuisance which the magistrates had not considered. Further, the magistrates had conflated the absence of a noise nuisance on complaint A with the question whether the BPM defence had arisen on complaint B (since when the latter occurred, giving rise to a greater amount of noise, the same mitigating steps had been taken by the defendant).