Western Australian Consolidated Acts Western Australian Consolidated Acts (1) Any medical
officer of health, or environmental health officer, or any other officer
authorised in that behalf by the Executive Director, Public Health, or a local
government (in this section called the competent officer ) may, in the
exercise of the powers conferred on him by this Division —
(a) at
all reasonable hours have access to all public or private salerooms occupied
or used by merchants, brokers, wholesale dealers or other persons, and to all
public and private warehouses, factories, stores, quays, sheds, ships or
barges where drugs are offered for sale, or deposited for the purpose of sale,
and seize or procure samples of any drugs so offered for sale;
(b)
seize or procure samples of any drugs at their place of delivery, or at any
railway station or other place during transit, or on the premises of or
elsewhere in the possession of any person for the purpose of carriage;
(c)
seize on board any vessel or procure at the port of entry or elsewhere samples
of any drugs imported as merchandise;
(d)
seize or procure samples of any drug which the competent officer may suspect
to have been sold or to be intended to be sold as a drug with the standard
appointed for which it is not in conformity;
(e) for
any purpose referred to in paragraph (a), (b), (c) or (d), open any
package in which any drugs referred to in that paragraph may be contained.
(2) A person having
the possession, custody or control of any drug referred to in
subsection (1) who refuses to permit samples to be seized or procured
under that subsection commits an offence.
(3) A competent
officer who seizes or procures under subsection (1) a sample of a drug
which is consigned to any person shall forthwith divide that sample into 3
parts, and shall deliver or forward one of the parts to the consignor, if he
resides or carries on business in the State, and his name and his address
within the State appear on the package containing the drug, but if he does not
reside or carry on business in the State or his name and address do not so
appear, the part shall be delivered or forwarded by the competent officer to
the consignee.
(4) A competent
officer who has delivered or forwarded one part of a sample under
subsection (3) shall retain one of the other 2 parts of the sample
for future comparison, and shall submit the third part thereof to an analyst,
if he thinks it right to have that third part analysed.
(5) In addition to
complying with subsections (3) and (4), a competent officer shall, within
3 days after seizing or procuring the sample concerned, give to the
manufacturer of the drug concerned, if that manufacturer is other than the
consignor and his name and address are known to the competent officer and he
resides or carries on business within the State, notice in writing of the
intention of the competent officer to submit the third part of that sample to
an analyst.
(6) Whenever it is
desired to forward any portion of a sample under this section, that portion
may be sent through a post office as a registered letter or packet, or by such
other means or in such other manner as may be prescribed.
(7) A competent
officer who seizes or procures under this section a sample of a drug
which is not consigned to any person shall submit the whole sample to an
analyst if he thinks it right to have the same analysed.
(8)
Section 227(8), (9), (10), (11), (12) and (14) shall be deemed to be
repeated in this section (with the words “seized or procured”
substituted for the word “purchased” in subsection (10) of
that section), and shall have effect in connection with the foregoing
provisions of this section accordingly.
(9) In this
section —
package includes parcel, box, barrel, basket, bag,
case or tin.
[Section 228 inserted by No. 26 of 1985
s. 7; amended by No. 80 of 1987 s. 75; No. 59 of 1991
s. 5; No. 14 of 1996 s. 4.]