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Biological Agents and Toxins Act

(CHAPTER 24A)

(Original Enactment: Act 36 of 2005)

REVISED EDITION 2006

(31st December 2006)

An Act to prohibit or otherwise regulate the possession, use, import, transhipment, transfer and transportation of biological agents, inactivated biological agents and toxins, to provide for safe practices in the handling of such biological agents and toxins.

[3rd January 2006]

PART I

PRELIMINARY

Short title

1. This Act may be cited as the Biological Agents and Toxins Act.

Interpretation

2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires —

“approval” means an approval granted by the Director under this Act;

“biological agent” means —

(a)	any micro-organism (including any bacterium, virus, fungus, rickettsia and parasite);
(b)	any infectious substance (including any prion); or
(c)	any component of a micro-organism or an infectious substance (but not including any toxin),

that is capable of causing death, disease or other biological malfunction in a human;

“biological agent waste” means any unwanted, unused or obsolete biological agent or any material or waste contaminated with any biological agent;

“biosafety committee” means a biosafety committee appointed under section 39;

“certification”, in relation to a facility, means a certification under section 51, and includes a re-certification of the facility;

“certified facility” means a facility certified under section 51;

“diagnosis” means any activity undertaken solely with the intention of analysing any specimen from a person or an animal in which a biological agent is or is suspected of being present for the purpose of —

(a)	determining the cause of any disease suffered by any person or animal;
(b)	assessing the clinical progress of any person or animal;
(c)	carrying out the clinical management of any person or animal; or
(d)	determining the cause of death of any person or animal in an autopsy;

“Director” means the Director of Medical Services;

“enforcement officer” means any person appointed by the Director to be an enforcement officer under section 3(2);

“excluded purpose” means any purpose specified in section 4(1);

“facility” means any premises or conveyance that is being used for —

(a)	the storage of any biological agent or toxin; or
(b)	the carrying out of any activity involving any biological agent or toxin;

“Fifth Schedule toxin” means any toxin specified in the Fifth Schedule;

“First Schedule (Part I) biological agent” means any biological agent specified in Part I of the First Schedule;

“First Schedule (Part II) biological agent” means any biological agent specified in Part II of the First Schedule;

“First Schedule biological agent” means any biological agent specified in the First Schedule;

“Fourth Schedule biological agent” means any biological agent specified in the Fourth Schedule;

“goods in transit” means goods that are brought into Singapore solely for the purpose of taking them out of Singapore, whether on the same conveyance on which they were brought into Singapore or on another conveyance, without the goods being landed and kept at any place in Singapore pending their being taken out of Singapore;

“import” means to bring into Singapore any goods other than goods in transit or goods which are to be transhipped;

“inactivated”, in relation to a biological agent, means that the biological agent has been rendered non-infectious and unable to replicate itself under any condition;

“large-scale production”, in relation to a biological agent, means the production by any person of the biological agent using equipment at a facility capable of producing in aggregate 10 or more litres of culture of the biological agent at any one time;

“non-peaceful purpose” means any purpose that is calculated to —

(a)	cause death to any person or endanger any person’s life;
(b)	create a serious risk to the health or the safety of the public or a section of the public;
(c)	release into the environment, distribute, or expose the public or a section of the public to, any biological agent or toxin, in order to cause damage or harm to the environment or the public or a section thereof;
(d)	disrupt or seriously interfere with the provision of essential emergency services such as the police, civil defence and medical services;
(e)	cause prejudice to public security or national defence;
(f)	influence or compel the Government, any other government, or any international organisation to do or refrain from doing any act; or
(g)	intimidate the public or a section of the public;

“operator”, in relation to a facility, means the person who operates the facility or who has the management or control of the facility;

“permit” means a permit granted by the Director under this Act;

“protected place” means any premises declared to be a protected place under the Protected Areas and Protected Places Act (Cap. 256);

“public transportation” means transportation by bus, taxi, rail or any other conveyance, whether publicly or privately operated, which provides general or special service to the general public on a regular and continuing basis, and includes such other means of transportation as may be prescribed as a type of public transportation for the purposes of this Act;

“registered medical practitioner” means a medical practitioner registered under the Medical Registration Act (Cap. 174), and includes a dentist registered under the Dentists Act (Cap. 76);

“Second Schedule biological agent” means any biological agent specified in the Second Schedule;

“Singapore Civil Defence Force” means the Singapore Civil Defence Force raised and maintained under the Civil Defence Act (Cap. 42);

“staff”, in relation to any facility, means —

(a)	any person employed at the facility to do any work under a contract of service;
(b)	any consultant assisting the operator of the facility in the carrying out of any activity involving any biological agent or toxin at the facility; and
(c)	any other person (including any student or intern) authorised by the operator of the facility to carry out any activity involving any biological agent or toxin at the facility;

“Third Schedule biological agent” means any biological agent specified in the Third Schedule;

“toxin” means any poisonous substance that is produced and extracted from any micro-organism;

“transferee”, in relation to any biological agent or toxin, means the person to whom the biological agent or toxin is provided;

“transferor”, in relation to any biological agent or toxin, means the person who provides the biological agent or toxin to another person;

“tranship” means to bring any goods into Singapore solely for the purpose of taking them out of Singapore, whether on the same conveyance on which they were brought into Singapore or on another conveyance, where the goods are landed and kept at any place in Singapore pending their being taken out of Singapore;

“uncertified facility” means a facility that is not certified under section 51.