EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
CUSTOMS ACT 1901
CUSTOMS (PROHIBITED IMPORTS) REGULATIONS (AMENDMENT)
STATUTORY RULES 1988 NO. 375
ISSUED BY THE AUTHORITY OF THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR SCIENCE, CUSTOMS AND SMALL BUSINESS
These Statutory Rules repeal the Customs controls on the importation of:
i) ships
ii) counterfeit coin and imitation or counterfeit bank notes; and
iii) eggs (not in shells).
Details of the Regulations are as follows:
Regulation 1: is a machinery provision which provides that the Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulations are the “Principal Regulations” for the purposes of these Statutory Rules.
Regulations 2: repeals regulation 4L of the Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulations. Regulation 4L provides that the importation of ships is prohibited unless the person importing the ship is the holder of a permission granted by the Minister of State for Transport and Communications or an authorized officer. This provision was designed to provide an indirect form of industry assistance to the Australian shipbuilding industry, by restricting the importation of vessels, and in particular, secondhand vessels.
There has been a progressive relaxation of the operation of this Regulation over recent years to allow the entry of a greater number of vessels, and more recently, given the current strength of the local shipbuilding industry, the Government decided to remove the import restrictions altogether.
Regulation 3: amends the First Schedule to the Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulations by omitting items 10 and 19.
• item 10 prohibits absolutely the importation of counterfeit coin. Goods falling within the terms of item 10 were declared prohibited imports in the original Customs Act 1901 and were transferred to the Regulations in 1956.
• item 19 prohibits absolutely the importation of imitation or counterfeit bank notes, and all articles which, not being bank notes, so nearly resemble bank notes as to be likely to deceive. Goods falling within the terms of item 19 were proclaimed as prohibited imports in 1910 and incorporated in the Regulations in 1935.
As the Crimes (Currency) Act 1981 is now in force (it commenced operation on 16 December 1985) it is no longer necessary to maintain these items in the Regulations. In particular, sections 10, 12 and 20 and subsections 21(2), 29(1) and 29(3) of the Crimes (Currency) Act 1981 are quite explicit with regard to the importation of counterfeit money as well as goods used in the manufacture of counterfeit money.
Regulation 4: amends the Third Schedule to the Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulations by omitting item 8. Item 8 prohibits the importation of eggs not in shell unless a prescribed certificate is produced to the Collector. The prohibition was first effected by Proclamation in 1907 in an attempt to ensure that certain standards of hygiene were observed.
The Australian Customs Service is no longer responsible for the health requirements of imported goods; this is the role that the Department of Primary Industries and Energy, and in particular, the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service, perform. Under subsection 13(1) of the Quarantine Act 1908 the Governor-General may by proclamation prohibit, amongst other things, the importation into Australia of any articles likely, in his opinion, to introduce any infectious or contagious disease, or disease or pest affecting persons, animals or plants; or any animals or parts of animals.
By Quarantine Proclamation No. 85A (published in Australian Government Gazette No. G4, 28 January 1975) the Governor-General prohibited the importation into Australia of eggs, egg pulp, dried eggs, egg noodles and egg albumen in any form unless the Director of Quarantine or a person authorized by him has, by instrument in writing, consented to the importation and the instrument is produced to a Collector within the meaning of the Customs Act 1901 or to a quarantine officer. Given this control, there is no need to continue the Customs control.