Meat Export
(Penalties) Act 1981
No.
149 of 1981
An
Act to provide penalties for certain offences against the Exports (Meat)
Regulations
[Assented to 26 October 1981]
BE
IT ENACTED by the Queen, and the Senate and the House of Representatives of the
Commonwealth of Australia, as follows:
Short
title
1. This Act may be cited as
the Meat Export (Penalties) Act 1981.
Commencement
2. This Act shall come into
operation on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.
Penalties
3. (1) A person who
contravenes regulation 33a or 58
or sub-regulation 59 (1) of the Exports (Meat) Regulations is guilty of an
indictable offence and, subject to this section, is punishable on conviction by
a fine not exceeding $100,000 or imprisonment for a period not exceeding 5
years, or both.
(2) Notwithstanding that an
offence referred to in sub-section (1) is an indictable offence, a court of
summary jurisdiction may hear and determine proceedings in respect of such an
offence if the court is satisfied that it is proper to do so and the defendant
and the prosecutor consent.
(3) Where, in accordance
with sub-section (2), a court of summary jurisdiction convicts a person of an
offence referred to in sub-section (1), the penalty that the court may impose
is a fine not exceeding $5,000 or imprisonment for a period not exceeding 1 year,
or both.
Modification
of sub-regulation 59 (2)
4. Sub-regulation 59 (2) of
the Exports (Meat) Regulations has effect as if the reference in that
sub-regulation to an offence were a reference to an offence referred to in
sub-section 3(1) consisting of a contravention of sub-regulation 59 (1) of
those Regulations.
Application
5. (1) If, at any time after
the commencement of this Act, a provision of the Exports (Meat) Regulations
referred to in section 3 or 4 (in this section referred to as a “prescribed
provision”) is amended or repealed, this Act ceases to apply in relation to
that provision.
(2) Subject to sub-section
(1), this Act applies in relation to a prescribed provision as affected in its
operation from time to time by the amendment or repeal of any other provision
of the Exports (Meat) Regulations