PART 7
COVID‑19 CONTROL ORDERS
Control order to prevent spread of COVID-19
34.—(1)  The Minister may make regulations (called in this Part a control order) for the purpose of preventing, protecting against, delaying or otherwise controlling the incidence or transmission of COVID‑19 in Singapore if the Minister is satisfied that —
(a)the incidence and transmission of COVID‑19 in the community in Singapore constitutes a serious threat to public health; and
(b)a control order is necessary or expedient to supplement the Infectious Diseases Act and any other written law.
(2)  Without limiting subsection (1), a control order may make provision as follows:
(a)to require people or certain people to stay at or in, and not leave, a specified place (whether or not a place of accommodation);
(b)to restrict movement of or contact between people, including prohibiting or limiting group activities or other activities of people within the specified place in paragraph (a), restricting the use of any facilities at that place and limiting movement to and from that place, whether by time or location;
(c)to require the doing of one or both of the following at a specified time, in a specified manner or to a specified extent, in relation to any premises or facility used to carry out any business, undertaking or work:
(i)close the premises or facility;
(ii)limit access to the premises or facility;
(d)to restrict the time, manner or extent for the carrying out of any business, undertaking or work, including prescribing restrictions on the maximum number of people, opening hours or facilities provided, for the carrying on of the business, undertaking or work;
(e)to prohibit or restrict the conduct of or participation in any event or gathering in any premises;
(f)to disapply any prohibition or restriction in paragraph (a), (b), (c), (d) or (e) to the extent specified in the control order or, where it is impracticable in the circumstances of the particular case for the Minister to make or amend any control order to this end, that is prescribed on the Internet website of the Government at https://covid.gobusiness.gov.sg/essentialservices/.
(3)  A control order remains in force until its expiry, its revocation or the date this Part ceases to be in force, whichever occurs first.
[Act 6 of 2021 wef 01/03/2021]
(4)  A control order and any amendment thereof must be presented to Parliament as soon as possible after publication in the Gazette.
(5)  If a resolution is passed by Parliament annulling a control order or any part of it, or any amendment thereof, as from a specified date, the control order or that part or amendment of it ceases to have effect as from that date, but without affecting anything previously done under that control order or part.
(6)  The Minister must, in addition, cause to be published every control order, and any amendment thereof, so as to bring it to the notice of all persons who may be affected by the control order.
(7)  A person who, without reasonable excuse, contravenes a control order, commits an offence and shall be liable on conviction —
(a)to a fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or to both; or
(b)in the case of a second or subsequent offence, to a fine not exceeding $20,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or to both.
(8)  Where a control order is in force and it appears to the Minister that it is necessary to facilitate the deployment of any land, undertaking or other resources for the purpose of the control order, that necessity is deemed as a necessity for the maintenance of supplies and services essential to the life of the community, for the purposes of section 2 of the Requisition of Resources Act (Cap. 273).
(9)  In this section, “premises” includes any place, building or part of a building, whether open or enclosed, and whether public or private.
Enforcement of control order
35.—(1)  The Minister may appoint the following persons as enforcement officers for the purposes of this Part, subject to any conditions or restrictions as the Minister thinks fit:
(a)a police officer;
(b)a Health Officer appointed under section 4(1)(a) or (b) of the Infectious Diseases Act;
(c)a public officer;
(d)an officer of a statutory body;
(e)an auxiliary police officer;
(f)an employee of a prescribed institution under the Infectious Diseases Act, except for the purposes of subsection (2)(b).
(2)  Without affecting an offence under section 34(7), an enforcement officer may, for the purposes of enforcing compliance with a control order —
(a)direct any individual or group of individuals to do one or more of the following:
(i)not to leave any premises as required by the control order;
(ii)to not enter, or to leave, any premises that is closed or entry to which is restricted by the control order;
(iii)to go to a specified place applicable to the individual or individuals, or for the time being to another place, or to take such other steps as may be required to comply with the control order;
(iv)to disperse; and
(b)direct any person carrying on a business or undertaking, or any individual working, at any premises or facility (other than at the time, in the manner and to the extent permitted under the control order) to do one or more of the following:
(i)to stop carrying on the business or undertaking, and stop working, at the premises or facility;
(ii)to take steps to comply with the restrictions in the control order with respect to the carrying on of the business, undertaking or work;
(iii)to close or limit access to the premises or facility.
(3)  A direction under subsection (2) may be given orally.
(4)  If an oral direction is given —
(a)to a group of individuals, it is deemed to have been given to each member of the group if the oral direction is made in a manner which is likely to be audible to all the members of the group or as many of them as reasonably practicable; and
(b)to an officer, an employee, a manager, a partner or an agent of a person carrying on the business or undertaking, or working, at the premises or facility in subsection (2)(b), it is deemed to have been given to the person carrying on that business or undertaking at the premises or facility.
(5)  An enforcement officer has all the powers of a Health Officer authorised under sections 55A, 55B and 57 of the Infectious Diseases Act for the purposes of ascertaining whether the control order is being complied with or investigating an offence under this Part, as the Health Officer has in relation to an offence under that Act.
(6)  A police officer, or an enforcement officer appointed under subsection (1)(b), (c), (d) or (e) authorised in writing by the Minister, may arrest without warrant any person committing or who the police officer or enforcement officer has reason to believe has committed any offence under subsection (11) or section 34(7), and in so doing, the enforcement officer has the same powers as a Health Officer authorised under section 56 of the Infectious Diseases Act in relation to an arrest without warrant under that Act.
(7)  An enforcement officer who, in the course of his or her duties under this Part, exercises any power as such, is treated as a public servant for the purposes of the Penal Code when exercising such power.
(8)  No liability shall lie against an enforcement officer with respect to anything done or omitted to be done in good faith and with reasonable care in the discharge or purported discharge of the enforcement officer’s functions and duties under this Part.
(9)  An individual commits an offence if he or she, without reasonable excuse, refuses or fails to comply with a direction of an enforcement officer given to the individual under subsection (2)(a) or (b) or deemed to be given under subsection (4)(a).
(10)  A body corporate, unincorporated association or partnership commits an offence if it, without reasonable excuse, refuses or fails to comply with a direction of an enforcement officer given to it under subsection (2)(b) or deemed to be given under subsection (4)(b).
(11)  A person who commits an offence under subsection (9) or (10) shall be liable on conviction —
(a)to a fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or to both; or
(b)in the case of a second or subsequent offence, to a fine not exceeding $20,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or to both.