Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Amendment) Ordinance

Bill No. 11/1963

Read the first time on 28th November 1963.
An Ordinance to amend the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Ordinance (Chapter 237 of the Revised Edition).
Be it enacted by the Yang di-Pertuan Negara with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of Singapore, as follows: —
Short title and commencement
1.  This Ordinance may be cited as the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Amendment) Ordinance, 1963, and shall be deemed to have come into operation on the 1st day of September 1963.
Amendment of section 2
2.  Section 2 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Ordinance (hereinafter in this Ordinance referred to as the “principal Ordinance”) is hereby amended —
(a)by inserting immediately after the word “tame” appearing in the second line of the definition of “animal” therein the expression “, and includes poultry”;
(b)by deleting the definitions of “Government veterinary officer” and “Government veterinary surgeon” appearing therein and substituting therefor the following: —
“ “Government veterinary officer” means the Assistant Director of Primary Production (Veterinary) and includes any Senior Primary Production Officer (Veterinary);”and
(c)by inserting immediately after the definition of “Government veterinary officer” appearing therein the following new definitions: —
“ “hatchery” means a place used for the commercial hatching by natural or artificial means of chicks, ducklings, goslings, poults or other birds;
“poultry” includes all wild and domestic fowls, ducks, geese, turkeys and their young.”.
Amendment of section 3
3.  Subsection (1) of section 3 of the principal Ordinance is hereby amended —
(a)by deleting the words “four hundred” appearing in the penultimate line thereof and substituting therefor the words “one thousand”; and
(b)by deleting the words “six months” appearing in the last line thereof and substituting therefor the words “one year”.
Amendment of section 4
4.  Subsection (1) of section 4 of the principal Ordinance is hereby deleted and the following substituted therefor: —
(1)  The Government veterinary officer, any police officer or any public officer authorised in writing in that behalf by the Minister may arrest without warrant any person who, he has reason to believe, is guilty of an offence under section 3 of this Ordinance, whether upon his own view thereof or upon the complaint and information of any other person who shall declare his name and place of abode to such officer.”.
Amendment of section 5
5.  Section 5 of the principal Ordinance is hereby amended —
(a)by deleting the words “a Government veterinary surgeon” appearing in the fifth and sixth lines of subsection (2) thereof and substituting therefor the words “the Government veterinary officer”;
(b)by deleting the words “four hundred” appearing in the third line of subsection (4) thereof and substituting therefor the words “one thousand”; and
(c)by deleting the words “six months” appearing in the fourth and fifth lines of subsection (4) thereof and substituting therefor the words “one year”.
Amendment of section 6
6.  Section 6 of the principal Ordinance is hereby amended by deleting the expression “and, within the limits of the City, the City Council,” appearing in the first and second lines thereof.
Amendment of section 10
7.  Section 10 of the principal Ordinance is hereby amended —
(a)by deleting the expression “—(1)” appearing in the first line of subsection (1) thereof; and
(b)by deleting subsection (2) thereof.
Repeal and re-enactment of section 11
8.  Section 11 of the principal Ordinance is hereby repealed and the following substituted therefor: —
Licensing of places where animals are kept in captivity, etc
11.—(1)  No person shall —
(a)keep in captivity for exhibition, sale or export any animal in any place which is not licensed in that behalf by the Government veterinary officer;
(b)keep or use as a hatchery any place which is not licensed by the Government veterinary officer; and
(c)keep any dog of the age of four months or over, which is not licensed by the Government veterinary officer.
(2)  Any person who contravenes the provisions of subsection (1) of this section shall be guilty of an offence under this Ordinance and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding —
(a)five hundred dollars in the case of an offence under paragraph (a) or (b) of subsection (1) of this section and to a further fine not exceeding twenty-five dollars for each day on which the offence continues after conviction thereof; or
(b)two hundred and fifty dollars in the case of an offence under paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of this section and to a further fine not exceeding ten dollars for each day on which the offence continues after conviction thereof.”.
New section 12
9.  The principal Ordinance is hereby amended by inserting immediately after section 11 thereof the following new section: —
Regulations
12.—(1)  The Minister may make regulations —
(a)for the licensing, control, supervision and inspection of places in which animals are or may be kept in captivity for exhibition, sale or export and may by such regulations prescribe the conditions under which animals may be so kept and the circumstances under which licences may be revoked or suspended;
(b)for the licensing, control, supervision and inspection of hatcheries and as to the circumstances under which licences may be revoked or suspended;
(c)for the licensing, control, keeping and destruction of dogs;
(d)for the suppression of cruelty to animals;
(e)prescribing the fees to be charged in respect of licences and the conditions under which licences may be issued;
(f)prescribing that any act or omission in contravention of any regulation made under this Ordinance shall be an offence and imposing penalties for such offences which penalties shall not exceed a fine of one thousand dollars, and where any such act or omission is a continuing one to a further fine not exceeding fifty dollars for each day on which the offence continues after conviction thereof; and
(g)generally for carrying out the purposes of this Ordinance.
(2)  All regulations made under this Ordinance shall be published in the Gazette and shall be presented to the Legislative Assembly as soon as may be after publication and if a resolution is passed pursuant to a motion notice whereof has been given for a sitting day not later than the first available sitting day of the Assembly next after the expiry of three months from the date when such regulations are so presented annulling the regulations or any part thereof as from a specified date, such regulations or such part thereof as the case may be shall thereupon become void as from such date but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder or to the making of new regulations.”.