Biosecurity Act 2015

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Biosecurity Act 2015
Coat of Arms of Australia.svg
Parliament of Australia
Passed15 May 2015
Enacted16 June 2015
Royal assent 16 June 2015
Legislative history
Introduced2014 [1]
Summary
The Biosecurity Act 2015 supersedes the Quarantine Act 1908 and manages biosecurity risks in Australia.
Status: Current legislation

The Biosecurity Act 2015 is an Act of the Parliament of Australia which manages biosecurity risks in Australia at the national border. It was enacted on 16 June 2015, after the Bill was passed with bipartisan support on 14 May 2015. It covers both agricultural and human medical biosecurity risks, including epidemics and pandemics, and is designed to contain and/or deal with any "diseases and pests that may cause harm to human, animal or plant health or the environment" in Australia.

Contents

The application of the Act was particularly tested during the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia.

History

The Act replaced most of the Quarantine Act 1908 , [2] which was wholly repealed on 16 June 2016 by the Biosecurity (Consequential Amendments and Transitional Provisions) Act 2015. [3] [4] [5] The new Act is a major reform of the Quarantine Act, in particular in its strengthening and modernising the existing framework of regulations governing biosecurity legislation in Australia. [6]

As recommended by the Beale Review (One Biosecurity: A Working Partnership, Roger Beale et al., 2008 [7] [8] ) and the earlier Nairn Report, [9] the Act adopts a risk-based approach, but includes several measures to manage unacceptable levels of biosecurity risk. [6] New requirements include how the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment (at the time of enactment, Department of Agriculture and Water Resources) would manage biosecurity risks associated with goods, people and vessels entering Australia. [10]

The Biosecurity Bill 2014 passed through parliament on 14 May 2015 with bipartisan support. The Act did not radically change operational functions, but were more clearly described, with the aim of being easier to use and reducing the complexity of administering it. The main change relate was the compliance and enforcement of powers. [6]

The Act has been amended a number of times, with the latest amended, as of 25 March 2020, being the Coronavirus Economic Response Package Omnibus Act 2020, which also affects other legislation. [11] Also related to the Act are the Biosecurity Charges Imposition (General) Act 2015, Biosecurity Regulation 2016, Biosecurity (Human Health) Regulation 2016, and Biosecurity Charges Imposition (General) Regulation 2016. [12]

Description

The Act is about "managing diseases and pests that may cause harm to human, animal or plant health or the environment" in Australia however has no jurisdiction within Australia as biosecurity is a sovereign right of the States under the Australian Constitution and s focused on preventing the entry of new pests and diseases and managing ‘Commonwealth land’ such as ports and defence force sites, There are chapters which cover management of risks in several areas, including: [5]

Part 3 (Section 344) states that the Director of Human Biosecurity is the person acting in the capacity of Commonwealth Chief Medical Officer (CMO), and this person has certain powers conferred upon them by this Act. Part 4 deals with human biosecurity officers. The CMO may, under Section 563 of the Act, make members of the Australian Defence Force, as well as officers and employees of the federal and state departments of health, human biosecurity officers, if satisfied that they have appropriate clinical expertise. [5] [13]

Biosecurity emergencies

Chapter 8, Part 2 of the Act deals with "emergencies involving threats or harm to human health on a nationally significant scale". This chapter deals with special powers which exist as well as the powers available under Chapter 2. "The Governor‑General may make a human biosecurity emergency declaration if the Health Minister is satisfied that the special powers in this Part are needed to deal with a human biosecurity emergency. The Health Minister may exercise special powers under this Part to deal with a human biosecurity emergency, subject to limits and protections. These powers may be exercised anywhere in Australian territory". [5]

Similar emergency powers are given to the Governor-General and Agriculture Minister for other types of biosecurity emergencies, in Chapter 8, Par 1. In addition, the Agriculture Minister may "declare Commonwealth bodies, or parts of Commonwealth bodies, to be national response agencies for the purposes of dealing with biosecurity emergencies", and some of the Minister's powers may be delegated to staff in the national response agencies. [5]

Scope

An article on the parliamentary website explains the scope the Health Minister's powers under the Act under sections 477 and 478. The minister may: [13]

• set requirements to regulate or restrict the movement of persons, goods, or conveyances

• require that places be evacuated

• make directions to close premises.

The powers are not limited to these circumstances. Under the Biosecurity Act, provided that the Minister is satisfied that an action is necessary to either combat the listed human disease (in this case, COVID-19) or to implement WHO recommendations in relation to that disease, the Minister may make a direction or set a requirement to ensure that action takes place.

However, the Minister may not impose certain biosecurity obligations on an individual, such as requiring them to undergo a medical examination, requiring body samples for diagnosis, or requiring them to receive specified treatment or medication. Such measures can only be authorised under a human biosecurity control order, made by the Commonwealth Chief Medical Officer or a biosecurity officer in relation to a person who may have a listed human disease (including COVID-19).

However, Sub-section 478(5) places limits on interference with state and territory bodies and officials: "A direction must not be given under subsection (1) to an officer or employee of a State, Territory or State or Territory body unless the direction is in accordance with an agreement between the Commonwealth and the State, Territory or body". (For the COVID-19 pandemic, an intergovernmental agreement was signed.) [13]

Invocations

2020 invocation of state of emergency

On 18 March 2020, [14] a human biosecurity emergency was declared in Australia owing to the risks to human health posed by the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia, after the National Security Committee met the previous day. The Act specifies that the Governor-General may declare such an emergency if the Health Minister (at the time Greg Hunt; as of October 2022 Mark Butler) is satisfied that "a listed human disease is posing a severe and immediate threat, or is causing harm, to human health on a nationally significant scale". This gives the Minister sweeping powers, including imposing restrictions or preventing the movement of people and goods between specified places, and evacuations. [2] The Biosecurity (Human Biosecurity Emergency) (Human Coronavirus with Pandemic Potential) Declaration 2020 was declared by the Governor-General, David Hurley, under Section 475 of the Act. [14] The Act only allows for three months, but the period may be extended for a further three if the Governor-General is satisfied that it is required. [2] [13]

The Biosecurity (Human Biosecurity Emergency) (Human Coronavirus with Pandemic Potential) (Emergency Requirements) Determination 2020, made by the Health Minister on the same day under Section 477 of the Act, banned international cruise ships from entering Australian ports before 15 April 2020. [13]

On 25 March 2020, the Health Minister made a second determination, the Biosecurity (Human Biosecurity Emergency) (Human Coronavirus with Pandemic Potential) (Overseas Travel Ban Emergency Requirements) Determination 2020, which "forbids Australian citizens and permanent residents from leaving Australian territory by air or sea as a passenger". [13]

On 25 April 2020, the Biosecurity (Human Biosecurity Emergency) (Human Coronavirus with Pandemic Potential) (Emergency Requirements—Public Health Contact Information) Determination 2020, made under subsection 477(1) of the Act, was signed into law by the Health Minister. [15] The purpose of the new legislation is "to make contact tracing faster and more effective by encouraging public acceptance and uptake of COVIDSafe", COVIDSafe being the new mobile app created for the purpose. The function of the app is to record contact between any two people who both have the app on their phones when they come within 1.5 metres (4 ft 11 in) of each other. The encrypted data would remain on the phone for 21 days of not encountering a person logged with confirmed COVID-19. [16]

Investigation into breach by Ruby Princess

On 5 April 2020, New South Wales Police launched a criminal investigation into whether the operator of Ruby Princess , Carnival Australia, broke the Biosecurity Act 2015 (Cwth) and possibly NSW state laws, by deliberately concealing COVID-19 cases. [17]

2021 India flight ban

Late on 30 April 2021, after some days earlier imposing a ban on all flights from India, which was experiencing a dramatic rise in cases in a second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Federal Government announced a ban on Australian citizens and permanent residents in India from entering Australia via any route. These measures came into effect on 3 May and would remain in force until 15 May. [18] Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced that anyone, including Australian citizens and permanent residents, caught returning from India to Australia via any route would be subject to punishment under the Biosecurity Act, [19] with penalties for breaches including up to five years' jail, a fine of A$66,600, or both. [20] Foreign Minister Marise Payne reported that 57% of positive cases in quarantine had come from India in April, compared with 10% in March. The move was branded as racist by some critics, [21] and a potential breach of international human rights law. [22] On 3 May 2021 the government announced that it would review this decision earlier than originally intended, possibly within the same week. [20] There were about 9,000 Australian citizens in India, of whom 650 were considered vulnerable. [19]

On 7 May 2021 Morrison announced that the flight ban would end on 15 May and that repatriation flights to the Northern Territory would start on this date. [23] A legal challenge to the ban was due to be heard in the Federal Court in Sydney on 12 May 2021, [24] part of the challenge was rejected on 10 May. [25]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Quarantine</span> Epidemiological intervention to prevent disease transmission

A quarantine is a restriction on the movement of people, animals, and goods which is intended to prevent the spread of disease or pests. It is often used in connection to disease and illness, preventing the movement of those who may have been exposed to a communicable disease, yet do not have a confirmed medical diagnosis. It is distinct from medical isolation, in which those confirmed to be infected with a communicable disease are isolated from the healthy population.

Biosecurity refers to measures aimed at preventing the introduction and/or spread of harmful organisms intentionally or unintentionally outside their native range and/or within new environments. In agriculture, these measures are aimed at protecting food crops and livestock from pests, invasive species, and other organisms not conducive to the welfare of the human population. The term includes biological threats to people, including those from pandemic diseases and bioterrorism. The definition has sometimes been broadened to embrace other concepts, and it is used for different purposes in different contexts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">State of emergency</span> Declaration by a government allowing assumption of extraordinary power

A state of emergency is a situation in which a government is empowered to put through policies that it would normally not be permitted to do, for the safety and protection of its citizens. A government can declare such a state before, during, or after a natural disaster, civil unrest, armed conflict, medical pandemic or epidemic or other biosecurity risk.

National biosecurity in Australia is governed and administered by two federal government departments, the Department of Health and the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. The Biosecurity Act 2015 (C'wealth) and related legislation is administered by the two departments and manages biosecurity risks at the national border. The Act aims to manage biosecurity risks to human health, agriculture, native flora and fauna and the environment. It also covers Australia's international rights and obligations, and lists specific diseases which are contagious and capable of causing severe harm to human health. Each state and territory has additional legislation and protocols to cover biosecurity in their jurisdiction (post-border) including the detection of pests and diseases that have breached the national border.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Quarantine Act 1908</span>

The Quarantine Act 1908(Cth) was an Act of the Parliament of Australia which is no longer in effect. It was assented to on 30 March 1908. It was superseded by the Biosecurity Act 2015 and repealed on 16 June 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Security Committee (Australia)</span> National security and major foreign policy body in Australia

The National Security Committee (NSC), also known as the National Security Committee of Cabinet, is the peak decision-making body for national security and major foreign policy matters in the Australian Government. It is a committee of the Cabinet of Australia, though decisions of the NSC do not require the endorsement of the Cabinet itself.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">COVID-19 pandemic in Canada</span>

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The COVID-19 pandemic in Australia was a part of the worldwide pandemic of the coronavirus disease 2019 caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. The first confirmed case in Australia was identified on 25 January 2020, in Victoria, when a man who had returned from Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, tested positive for the virus. As of 6 August 2022, Australia has reported over 11,350,000 cases and 19,265 deaths, with Victoria's 2020 second wave having the highest fatality rate per case.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984</span> United Kingdom legislation

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human rights issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coronavirus Act 2020</span> UK emergency legislation

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">COVIDSafe</span> Contact tracing app by the Australian Department of Health

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Responses to the COVID-19 pandemic in May 2020</span> Sequence of major events in a virus pandemic

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Responses to the COVID-19 pandemic in May 2021</span> Sequence of major events in a virus pandemic

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">COVID-19 pandemic in Western Australia</span> Ongoing COVID-19 viral pandemic in Western Australia

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This article documents the chronology and epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2, the virus which causes the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and is responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia during 2020.

References

  1. ↑ "Biosecurity Bill 2014". Federal Register of Legislation. Australian Government. 28 November 2014. Retrieved 28 March 2020. CC-BY icon.svg Text was copied from this source, which is available under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
  2. 1 2 3 McPhee, Sarah (17 March 2020). "Human biosecurity emergency declared in Australia". NewsComAu. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
  3. ↑ "Quarantine Act 1908". Federal Register of Legislation. Australian Government. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
  4. ↑ "Biosecurity (Consequential Amendments and Transitional Provisions) Act 2015". Federal Register of Legislation. Australian Government. 27 September 2017. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 "Biosecurity Act 2015". Federal Register of Legislation. Australian Government. 7 March 2019. Retrieved 23 March 2020. CC-BY icon.svg Text was copied from this source, which is available under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
  6. 1 2 3 "The Biosecurity Act 2015 - more than 100 years in the making, a shift to risk-based regulation, and activation of the Regulatory Powers Act". Maddocks. 15 June 2015. Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  7. ↑ Beal, Roger. "The Beale Review of Biosecurity". Issues Magazine. Archived from the original on 13 July 2021. Retrieved 23 March 2020. ...an edited version of Chapter 1 of One Biosecurity: A Working Partnership (the Beale review).
  8. ↑ Beale, Roger; Fairbrother, Jeff; Inglis, Andrew; Trebeck, David; Australia. Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry; Biosecurity Australia (September 2008), One Biosecurity : a working partnership, Dept. of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, ISBN   978-0-9803714-5-1, The independent review of Australia's quarantine and biosecurity arrangements report to the Australian Government. Full text here
  9. ↑ Durant, S.; Faunce, T (April 2018). "Analysis of Australia's New Biosecurity Legislation [Abstract]". Journal of Law and Medicine. 25 (3): 647–654. PMID   29978659.
  10. ↑ "Vessel Reporting Requirements and the Biosecurity Act". Australian Government. Department of Agriculture. 16 June 2016. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
  11. ↑ "Biosecurity Act 2015: Principal and Amendments". Federal Register of Legislation. Australian Government. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  12. ↑ The New South Wales Bar Association (20 March 2019). "COVID-19". New South Wales Bar Association. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Maclean, Howard; Elphick, Karen (27 March 2020). "COVID-19 Biosecurity Emergency Declaration". Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 17 April 2020.
  14. 1 2 Biosecurity (Human Biosecurity Emergency) (Human Coronavirus with Pandemic Potential) Declaration 2020 (PDF) (Report). Commonwealth of Australia. 18 March 2020. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  15. ↑ "Biosecurity (Human Biosecurity Emergency) (Human Coronavirus with Pandemic Potential) (Emergency Requirements—Public Health Contact Information) Determination 2020". Federal Register of Legislation. Australian Government. 25 April 2020. Retrieved 26 April 2020.
  16. ↑ Worthington, t Brett (26 April 2020). "Coronavirus tracing app COVIDSafe released by Government to halt spread of COVID-19 in Australia". ABC News. Retrieved 26 April 2020.
  17. ↑ Nguyen, Kevin; Thomas, Sarah (5 April 2020). "Homicide detectives launch criminal probe into coronavirus ship deaths". ABC News. Retrieved 5 April 2020.
  18. ↑ Duran, Pauline (1 May 2021). "Australia bans arrivals from India, says offenders face jail, fines". Reuters . Archived from the original on 1 May 2021. Retrieved 1 May 2021.
  19. 1 2 Martin, Sarah (3 May 2021). "Australians could die from Covid in India under travel ban, medical chief warns". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  20. 1 2 Murphy, Katharine (1 May 2021). "Covid crisis: Australians trying to return home from India face up to $66,000 fine or five years' jail". the Guardian. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  21. ↑ "Australia's India ban criticised as 'racist' rights breach". BBC News. 3 May 2021. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  22. ↑ Kagi, Jacob (1 May 2021). "Critics blast federal government's 'immoral and un-Australian' ban on citizens returning from India". ABC News. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  23. ↑ Hitch, Georgia (7 May 2021). "Scott Morrison says repatriation flights will begin as soon as India COVID travel ban ends". ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation). Retrieved 7 May 2021.
  24. ↑ Probyn, Andrew (5 May 2021). "Indian travel ban headed to court as Australian stuck in Bangalore launches legal challenge". ABC News. Retrieved 7 May 2021.
  25. ↑ Byrne, Elizabeth (10 May 2021). "Federal Court dismisses part of a challenge to the Australian Government's India travel ban". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
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