MISUSE OF DRUGS ACT 1990 - SECT 3 Interpretation
MISUSE OF DRUGS ACT 1990 - SECT 3
Interpretation(1) In this Act:
"analyst" means a person who is:
(a) appointed to be an analyst under subsection (8); or
(b) authorised under a law of the Commonwealth, a State or another Territory to issue a certificate or other document relating to a dangerous drug or other substance that is prima facie evidence of the facts alleged in the document.
"authorisation", for Part IIAB, see section 19U.
"authorised prescriber", see section 5 of the Medicines, Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act 2012 .
"child" means a person who has not attained the age of 18 years.
"commercial quantity", in relation to a dangerous drug, means a quantity or amount equal to or exceeding the quantity or amount of that dangerous drug specified in column 3 of Schedule 1 or 2 opposite to the name of that dangerous drug specified in column 1 of that Schedule.
"cultivate", in relation to a plant, includes the following:
(a) plant a seed, seedling or cutting of the plant or transplant the plant;
(b) nurture, tend or grow the plant;
(c) guard or conceal the plant, including against interference or discovery by humans or natural predators;
(d) harvest the plant, including picking any part of the plant or separating any resin or other substance from the plant.
"dangerous drug" means a Schedule 1 drug or Schedule 2 drug.
Note for definition dangerous drug
See also subsection (2).
"dentist" means a person registered under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law:
(a) to practise in the dental profession as a dentist (other than as a student); and
(b) in the dentists division of that profession.
"detection dog", see section 19U.
"drug analogue", see section 4B.
"drug detection area", see section 19U.
"electronic drug detection system", see section 19U.
"firearm", see section 3(1) of the Firearms Act 1997 .
"general drug detection", see section 19U.
"hulled", in relation to a seed, means a seed from which the outer coat or hull has been removed.
"indigenous community" means an area prescribed by regulation.
"infringement notice", see section 20A(1).
"infringement notice offence", see section 20(1).
low THC Cannabis sativa is a Cannabis sativa plant with a concentration of no more than 1% of delta 9-tetrahydrocanabinol in the plant's leaves and flowering heads.
"manufacture", in relation to a substance or thing, means any process by which the substance or thing is:
(a) produced, other than by the cultivation of a plant; or
(b) extracted or refined; or
(c) transformed into a different substance.
"non-viable", in relation to a seed, means a seed that is not able to germinate.
"nurse" practitioner means a person:
(a) registered under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law to practise in the nursing profession (other than as a student); and
(b) whose registration is endorsed as being qualified to practice as a nurse practitioner.
"optometrist "means a person registered under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law to practise in the optometry profession (other than as a student).
permissible Cannabis seeds are seeds of low THC Cannabis sativa that:
(a) contain not more than 0.0005% of tetrahydocannabinol; and
(b) are non-viable and hulled; and
(c) contain only naturally present cannabinoids.
"pharmacist" means a person registered under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law to practise in the pharmacy profession (other than as a student).
"place" includes a vehicle.
"police dog", see section 19U.
"possession", in relation to a person, includes being subject to the person's control notwithstanding that the thing possessed is in the custody of another person.
"precursor" means a substance prescribed by the Regulations as a precursor.
"premises" includes a structure, building or place (whether built on or not) and any part of a structure, building or place.
"prescribed amount", see section 20(2).
"produce" means:
(a) prepare, package or produce;
(b) offering to prepare, package or produce; or
(c) doing or offering to do an act preparatory to, in furtherance of, or for the purpose of, preparing, packaging or producing.
"prohibited plant" means:
(a) a plant that is specified in Schedule 1 or 2; or
(b) a plant that is not specified in Schedule 1 or 2 if a part of the plant, or an extract from the plant, is specified in Schedule 1 or 2.
"public place" includes any highway, premises or place (including water) to which at the material time the public have or are permitted to have access, whether on payment or otherwise, and any vehicle on or in a public place.
"reasonably believes" means believes on reasonable grounds.
"reasonably suspects" means suspects on reasonable grounds.
"road", see section 19U.
Schedule 1 drug means:
(a) a substance or thing that is specified in Schedule 1; or
(b) a plant that is not specified in Schedule 1 if a part of the plant, or an extract from the plant, is specified in Schedule 1.
Schedule 2 drug means:
(a) a substance or thing that is specified in Schedule 2; or
(b) a plant that is not specified in Schedule 2 if a part of the plant, or an extract from the plant, is specified in Schedule 2.
"senior police officer", see section 19U.
"supply" means:
(a) give, distribute, sell, administer, transport or supply, whether or not for fee, reward or consideration or in expectation of fee, reward or consideration; or
(b) offer to do an act mentioned in paragraph (a); or
(c) do, or offer to do, an act preparatory to, in furtherance of, or for the purpose of, an act mentioned in paragraph (a);
and includes barter and exchange.
"traffickable quantity", in relation to a dangerous drug, means a quantity or amount equal to or exceeding the quantity or amount of that dangerous drug specified in column 2 of Schedule 1 or 2 opposite to the name of the dangerous drug specified in column 1 of that Schedule.
"vehicle" includes any means of transport whatsoever by land, water or through the air.
"veterinarian" means a registered veterinarian as defined in section 3(1) of the Veterinarians Act 1994 .
Note for subsection (1)
The Interpretation Act 1978 contains definitions and other provisions that may be relevant to this Act.
(2) In this Act, a reference to a dangerous drug includes a reference to:
(a) a substance which is, in relation to a dangerous drug:
(i) an active principal of that dangerous drug;
(ii) a preparation or mixture of that dangerous drug (which may include a substance that is not a dangerous drug) that contains any proportion of that dangerous drug; or
(iii) a salt of that dangerous drug or active principal,
except where the substance is separately specified in Schedule 1 or 2; and
(b) a substance that is a drug analogue in relation to the dangerous drug, unless the substance is:
(i) a dangerous drug; or
(ii) a Scheduled substance as defined in section 7 of the Medicines, Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act 2012 .
(3) Subject to subsection (3A), for the purposes of determining under this Act whether an amount of a preparation or mixture of substances that contains a dangerous drug is equal to or more than the traffickable quantity or commercial quantity of the dangerous drug, the amount is to be determined as if all of the preparation or mixture were comprised of the dangerous drug.
(3A) If the preparation or mixture contains more than one dangerous drug, subsection (3B) applies.
(3B) If:
(a) all dangerous drugs found in the preparation or mixture are specified in Schedule 1:
(i) the amount for a traffickable quantity is to be determined as if all of the preparation or mixture were comprised of the dangerous drug that, of all the dangerous drugs found, has the least quantity specified opposite it in column 2 of Schedule 1; and
(ii) the amount for a commercial quantity is to be determined as if all of the preparation or mixture were comprised of the dangerous drug that, of all the dangerous drugs found, has the least quantity specified opposite it in column 3 of Schedule 1;
(b) all dangerous drugs found in the preparation or mixture are specified in Schedule 2:
(i) the amount for a traffickable quantity is to be determined as if all of the preparation or mixture were comprised of the dangerous drug that, of all the dangerous drugs found, has the least quantity specified opposite it in column 2 of Schedule 2; and
(ii) the amount for a commercial quantity is to be determined as if all of the preparation or mixture were comprised of the dangerous drug that, of all the dangerous drugs found, has the least quantity specified opposite it, in column 3 of Schedule 2; or
(c) one or more of the dangerous drugs found in the preparation or mixture is specified in Schedule 1 and one or more of the other dangerous drugs found in the preparation or mixture are specified in Schedule 2:
(i) the amount for a traffickable quantity is to be determined as if all of the preparation or mixture were comprised of the dangerous drug that, of all the dangerous drugs found, has the least quantity specified opposite it in column 2 of Schedule 1; and
(ii) the amount for a commercial quantity is to be determined as if all of the preparation or mixture were comprised of the dangerous drug that, of all the dangerous drugs found, has the least quantity specified opposite it in column 3 of Schedule 1.
(4) For this Act, the traffickable quantity or commercial quantity, respectively, of a substance that is a drug analogue is the traffickable quantity or commercial quantity of the dangerous drug in respect of which the drug analogue is a drug analogue.
(5) In this Act, a reference to the use or administration of a dangerous drug includes a reference to the ingestion, injection, inhalation and smoking of a dangerous drug, the inhalation of fumes caused by the heating or burning of a dangerous drug and any other means of introducing a dangerous drug into any part of the body of a person.
(6) For this Act and the Regulations, a person takes part in the supply, cultivation, manufacture or production of a dangerous drug if the person:
(a) takes, or participates in, a step, or causes a step to be taken, in the process of that supply, cultivation, manufacture or production; or
(b) provides or arranges finance for such a step in that process; or
(c) provides the premises in or on which such a step in that process is taken, or suffers or permits such a step in that process to be taken in or on premises of which the person is the owner, lessee or occupier or in the management of which the person participates; or
(d) exercises control or direction over a step in that process.
(7) In this Act a reference to an offence against this Act or a particular provision of this Act shall be read and construed as including an attempt or a conspiracy to commit such an offence.
(7A) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears, a thing is taken to be connected with, or relate to, an offence if the thing is taken to be a thing connected with, or relating to, an offence under section 116(1) of the Police Administration Act 1978 .
(8) The Minister may, by notice in the Gazette , appoint a person to be an analyst for the purposes of this Act.