Interpretation (Amendment) Bill

Bill No. 4/1993

Read the first time on 18th January 1993.

An Act to amend the Interpretation Act (Chapter 1 of the 1985 Revised Edition).

Be it enacted by the President with the advice and consent of the Parliament of Singapore, as follows:

Short title and commencement

1. This Act may be cited as the Interpretation (Amendment) Act 1993 and shall come into operation on such date as the Minister may, by notification in the Gazette, appoint.

New section 9A

2. The Interpretation Act is amended by inserting, immediately after section 9, the following section:

“Purposive interpretation of written law and use of extrinsic materials

9A.—(1) In the interpretation of a provision of a written law, an interpretation that would promote the purpose or object underlying the written law (whether that purpose or object is expressly stated in the written law or not) shall be preferred to an interpretation that would not promote that purpose or object.

(2) Subject to subsection (4), in the interpretation of a provision of a written law, if any material not forming part of the written law is capable of assisting in the ascertainment of the meaning of the provision, consideration may be given to that material —

(a)

to confirm that the meaning of the provision is the ordinary meaning conveyed by the text of the provision taking into account its context in the written law and the purpose or object underlying the written law; or

(b)

to ascertain the meaning of the provision when —

(i)	the provision is ambiguous or obscure; or
(ii)	the ordinary meaning conveyed by the text of the provision taking into account its context in the written law and the purpose or object underlying the written law leads to a result that is manifestly absurd or unreasonable.

(3) Without limiting the generality of subsection (2), the material that may be considered in accordance with that subsection in the interpretation of a provision of a written law shall include —

(a)	all matters not forming part of the written law that are set out in the document containing the text of the written law as printed by the Government Printer;
(b)	any explanatory statement relating to the Bill containing the provision;
(c)	the speech made in Parliament by a Minister on the occasion of the moving by that Minister of a motion that the Bill containing the provision be read a second time in Parliament;
(d)	any relevant material in any official record of debates in Parliament;
(e)	any treaty or other international agreement that is referred to in the written law; and
(f)	any document that is declared by the written law to be a relevant document for the purposes of this section.

(4) In determining whether consideration should be given to any material in accordance with subsection (2), or in determining the weight to be given to any such material, regard shall be had, in addition to any other relevant matters, to —

(a)	the desirability of persons being able to rely on the ordinary meaning conveyed by the text of the provision taking into account its context in the written law and the purpose or object underlying the written law; and
(b)	the need to avoid prolonging legal or other proceedings without compensating advantage.”.

Repeal and re-enactment of section 10

3. Section 10 of the Interpretation Act is repealed and the following section substituted therefor:

“Time of commencement of written law

10. A written law or a provision of a written law shall come into operation —

(a)	where a particular day for its coming into operation is specified by the written law or by a notification made under the written law, on the expiration of the previous day; or
(b)	where the day of its coming into operation is the date of its publication in the Gazette, on the expiration of the previous day.”.

Amendment of section 15

4. Section 15 of the Interpretation Act is amended by deleting subsection (2) and substituting the following subsection:

“(2) Where any written law repeals and re-enacts, with or without modification, any provision of a former written law, then, unless the contrary intention appears —

(a)	any reference in any other written law to the provision so repealed shall be construed as a reference to the provision so re-enacted;
(b)	in so far as any subsidiary legislation made or other thing done under the provision so repealed, or having effect as if so made or done, could have been made or done under the provision so re-enacted, it shall have effect as if made or done under that provision.”.

Amendment of section 16

5. The Interpretation Act is amended by renumbering section 16 as subsection (1) of that section, and by inserting immediately thereafter the following subsection:

“(2) This section shall also apply to —

(a)	a repeal of a written law by implication; and
(b)	the expiry of a temporary Act as if it were repealed by another Act.”.

Repeal and re-enactment of section 22

6. Section 22 of the Interpretation Act is repealed and the following section substituted therefor:

“Anticipatory exercise of powers

22. Where an Act or any part thereof does not come into operation immediately on its passing and the Act or that part confers power to make subsidiary legislation or to make appointments or to issue notifications or to prescribe forms or to do any other thing for the purposes of the Act or that part, then, unless the contrary intention appears, the power may be exercised and any subsidiary legislation, appointment, form or thing made, issued, prescribed or done under the power may be made, issued, prescribed or done so as to take effect at any time after the passing of the Act so far as may be necessary or expedient for the purpose of —

(a)	bringing the Act or that part into operation; or
(b)	giving full effect to the Act or that part on or after the day on which it comes into operation.”.

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