Fourth

Session, 46th General Assembly

Elizabeth II, 2011

BILL 29

AN ACT TO AMEND THE

FISH INSPECTION ACT

Received and Read the First Time ...................................................................................................

Second Reading .................................................................................................................................

Committee ............................................................................................................................................

Third Reading .....................................................................................................................................

Royal Assent ......................................................................................................................................

HONOURABLE

CLYDE JACKMAN

Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture

Ordered

to be printed by the Honourable House of Assembly

EXPLANATORY NOTES

This Bill would amend the Fish Inspection Act to

clarify the places subject to

an inspection and a search;

enable the removal of documents

produced in an inspection for photocopying or other reproduction;

clarify that inspectors have

peace officer powers when enforcing the Act and the regulations and are

entitled to the protections of a peace officer under the Criminal Code when performing their duties;

require a person to provide his

or her name and identification when requested to do so by an inspector for the

purpose of enforcing the Act or the regulations;

enable an inspector named in a

warrant to be accompanied by another inspector, officer or person designated by

the minister as the inspector considers necessary, when carrying out a search

under a warrant;

clarify that the proceeds of a

sale of seized fish or marine plants that will become tainted, decomposed or

unwholesome are to be paid into a special purpose account established in the

Consolidated Revenue Fund and provide record-keeping responsibilities for that

account;

make it an offence to

impersonate an inspector;

make it an offence to provide

misleading information to an inspector;

make it an offence to process

fish or marine plants for human consumption that are tainted, decomposed or unwholesome;

and

provide further clarity to

definitions and make technical changes.

A BILL

AN ACT TO AMEND THE FISH INSPECTION ACT

Analysis

S.2 Amdt.

Definitions

S.3 Amdt.

Appointment

S.4 Amdt.

Regulations

S.6 Amdt.

Powers of inspectors

S.8.1 Added

Powers and protection of inspectors

S.8.2 Added

Identification requirement

S.9 Amdt.

Search and seizure with warrant

S.9.1 Amdt.

Disposition of things seized

S.12.1 Added

Personating an inspector

S.13 Amdt.

Prohibition against processing or marketing

Be it enacted by the Lieutenant-Governor and

House of Assembly in Legislative Session convened, as follows:

RSNL1990 cF-12

as amended

(1) Paragraph 2(

a) of the Fish Inspection Act is repealed and the

following substituted:

(a) "agency agreement" means an

agreement between a licensed processor and another person licensed under this

Act which authorizes that person to buy fish or marine plants on behalf of the

licensed processor;

(2) Paragraph 2(

c) of the Act is repealed and the

following substituted:

(c) "carton" includes a type of package,

wrapper or confining band used in the holding, storing, packing or marketing of

fish or marine plants;

(3) Paragraph 2(e.1) of the Act is repealed and

the following substituted:

(e.1) "document" means a medium on which

is recorded or marked anything that is capable of being read or understood by a

person or a computer system or other device and includes a written record,

book, account, voucher, manifest, report, financial statement, bank statement,

shipping bill, bill of lading, label, drawing, plan, picture, or diagram;

(4) Paragraph 2(

k) of the Act is repealed and the

following substituted:

(k) "marketing" means the buying or

selling of fish or marine plants, and includes the holding in possession of, offering,

or advertising fish or marine plants for sale;

(5) Paragraph 2(

p) of the Act is repealed and the

following substituted:

(p) "processing" means cleaning,

grading, filleting, packing, canning, freezing, smoking, salting, cooking,

pickling, drying or preparing fish or marine plants for market in another

manner;

2. Paragraph 3(2)(

c) of the Act is repealed and

the following substituted:

(

c) provide an inspector or other person engaged

in the execution of this Act or the regulations with false or misleading

information or refuse to provide him or her with information as required by

this Act or the regulations;

3. Paragraph 4(1)(

g) of the Act is repealed and

the following substituted:

(

g) exempting persons, vehicles or establishments

or a class of persons, vehicles or establishments from the application of the

provisions of this Act or the regulations; and

4. (1) Subsection 6(1) of the Act is repealed

and the following substituted:

Powers of inspectors

(1) Where

it is reasonably necessary for the purpose of ensuring compliance with this Act

and the regulations, an inspector, officer or other person designated by the minister

may, at a reasonable time and without a warrant

(

a) enter an establishment, fish landing station

or a vehicle used for the carriage or storage of fish or marine plants and may

open a container or carton which he or she believes contains fish or marine

plants;

(

b) require to be produced for inspection or for

the purpose of obtaining copies or extracts from books, shipping bills, bills

of lading or other documents or papers relating to the quality, landing,

buying, processing, transportation or marketing of fish or marine plants;

(

c) remove books, shipping bills, bills of lading or

other documents or papers or extracts of them referred to in paragraph (

b) for

the purpose of making copies or otherwise reproducing them; and

(

d) take, without charge, the minimum sample of

fish or marine plants required for inspection.

(2) Section 6 of the Act is amended by adding immediately

after subsection (1) the following:

(1.1) Where an inspector, officer or other person

designated by the minister removes books, shipping bills, bills of lading or

other documents or papers under the authority of paragraph (1)(c), he or she

shall give to the person from whom those items were taken a receipt for them

and shall immediately make copies or otherwise reproduce them and return the

originals to the person who was given the receipt.

5. The Act is amended by adding immediately after

section 8 the following:

Powers and protection

of inspectors

8.1 An

inspector, officer or other person designated by the minister has the powers of

a peace officer to enforce this Act and the regulations and when performing his

or her duties is entitled to the protection to which a peace officer is

entitled under the Criminal Code .

6. The Act is amended by adding immediately after

section 8.1 the following:

Identification requirement

8.2

(1) Where

an inspector has reasonable and probable grounds to believe that a person is in

contravention of this Act or the regulations, the inspector may require the

person to provide him or her with identification information for the purpose of

enforcing this Act or the regulations.

(2) A person who is required to provide

identification under subsection (1) shall identify himself or herself by

(

a) giving the inspector the person's correct name

and address; and

(

b) providing the inspector with the supporting

documents sufficient for identification purposes.

7. (1) Subsection 9(1) of the Act is repealed

and the following substituted:

Search and

seizure with warrant

(1) For

the purpose of this section, a reference to "place" includes an

establishment, fish landing station, commercial or private premises, a

container or a vehicle.

(2) Subsection 9(2) of the Act is repealed and the

following substituted:

(2) A Provincial Court judge who is satisfied by information

in writing and upon oath or affirmation that there are reasonable grounds to

believe that there is on, at or in a place anything that will give evidence

with respect to a contravention of this Act or the regulations, may issue a

warrant authorizing an inspector named in the warrant, either alone or

accompanied by one or more inspectors, officers or other persons designated by

the minister as the inspector considers necessary, to enter the place and

search for and seize anything that will provide evidence with respect to a

contravention of this Act or the regulations, subject to the conditions that

may be specified in the warrant.

(3) Paragraph 9(3)(

b) of the Act is repealed and

the following substituted:

(

b) seize fish or marine plants, or containers or

cartons of them, at, in or on the place;

(1) Subsection 9.1(2) of the Act is

repealed and the following substituted:

(2) The proceeds of a sale referred to in

subsection (1) shall be paid into a non-interest bearing special purpose

account

(

a) established in the Consolidated Revenue Fund

by the Comptroller General of Finance; and

(

b) administered by the deputy minister or his or

her delegate.

(2) Subsection 9.1(5) of the Act is repealed and

the following substituted:

(5) Where a person is convicted of an offence

under this Act or the regulations or of a violation of a condition of a licence

issued under this Act or the regulations, the judge by whom he or she is convicted

may, in addition to a penalty imposed under this Act,

(

a) order that the

(

i) fish or marine plants, or containers or

cartons of them, by means of or in relation to which the offence was committed,

be forfeited to the Crown and disposed of as the minister directs,

(ii) costs incurred by the Crown of storage of the

fish or marine plants, or containers or cartons of them, during the disposition

of the case, be paid by the convicted person into the Consolidated Revenue

Fund, and

(iii) proceeds in the special purpose account be forfeited

to the Crown and paid immediately into the Consolidated Revenue Fund; or

(

b) where a bond or other security has been posted

under subsection (3), call upon the bond or other security and order the person

posting it to pay immediately the amount of the bond or other security into the

Consolidated Revenue Fund.

(3) Section 9.1 of the Act is amended by adding

immediately after subsection (5) the following:

(6) The deputy minister or his or her delegate

shall keep and maintain records of sales and proceeds paid into and out of a special

purpose account under this section.

9. The Act is amended by adding immediately after

section 12 the following:

Personating an

inspector

12.1 A

person who falsely represents himself or herself to be an inspector, officer or

other person designated by the minister, or uses a badge or

article of uniform

or equipment in a manner that is likely to cause persons to believe that he or

she is an inspector, officer or other person designated by the minister, is

guilty of an offence and liable on

summary conviction to a fine not exceeding $500

and in default of payment, to imprisonment for a period not exceeding 6 months.

10. Subsection 13(1) of the Act is repealed and the

following substituted:

Prohibition

against processing or marketing

(1) A

person shall not process or market fish or marine plants intended for human

consumption if the fish or marine plants are tainted, decomposed or

unwholesome.

William E. Parsons, Queen's Printer