{"id":"F2010L03295","name":"Trade Practices Act 1974 - Consumer Protection Notice No. 17 of 1993 - Imposition of a Permanent Ban on Goods","slug":"trade-practices-act-1974-consumer-protection-notice-no-17-of-1993-imposition-of-a-permanent-ban-on-g","collection":"legislative_instrument","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":85597,"registerId":"commonwealth-F2010L03295-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-02","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Trade Practices Act 1974 - Consumer Protection Notice No. 17 of 1993 - Imposition of a Permanent Ban on Goods","content":"---\nmeta-content-style-type: text/css\nmeta-content-type: application/xhtml+xml; charset=utf-8\nmeta-generator: Aspose.Words for .NET 20.2\ntitle: COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA\n---\n\n?xml version=\"1.0\" encoding=\"utf-8\" standalone=\"no\"?>\n\nCOMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA\n\n \n\nTrade Practices Act 1974\n\n \n\nConsumer Protection Notice No. 17 of 1993\n\n \n\nIMPOSITION OF A PERMANENT BAN ON GOODS\n\n \n\nI, JEANNETTE McHUGH, Minister for Consumer Affairs, pursuant to section 65C(7) of the Trade Practices Act 1974, IMPOSE a permanent ban on the goods of a kind specified below.\n\n \n\nParticulars of the goods: \n\n \n\nGas masks which contain asbestos.\n\n \n\n \n\nDated this second day of September 1993\n\n \n\n \n\nJEANNETTE McHUGH\n\nMinister for Consumer Affairs\n\n \n\n \n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":1,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The instrument remains precisely targeted at its original purpose: banning a specific dangerous product (asbestos-containing gas masks). The scope has not expanded beyond this narrow, safety-focused objective."},"complexity_factors":["Extremely short document (under 200 words)","No defined terms section","No cross-references to other legislation beyond the enabling section","Single, unambiguous prohibition with no exceptions or conditions","No procedural requirements or compliance mechanisms specified in the instrument itself"],"plain_english_summary":"This is a **permanent ban on gas masks that contain asbestos**.\n\n**What it does:**\n- Prohibits the supply, offering, or manufacture of gas masks containing asbestos anywhere in Australia.\n- This is a **permanent ban** (not temporary), meaning it stays in force indefinitely unless specifically revoked.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- Anyone who makes, imports, distributes, or sells gas masks.\n- Consumers are protected from exposure to asbestos, a known carcinogen (cancer-causing substance).\n\n**Why it matters:**\n- Asbestos fibres are deadly when inhaled. Gas masks containing asbestos pose a serious health risk because they are worn close to the face and breathing passages.\n- This ban prevents these dangerous products from entering the Australian market.\n\n**Legal basis:**\n- Made under the *Trade Practices Act 1974* (now largely replaced by the *Competition and Consumer Act 2010*), using powers that allow the Minister to ban unsafe consumer goods."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The notice limits the change in legal status to a single, clearly specified product: gas masks containing asbestos. The text does not indicate a broader or different scope than that explicit specification and does not record any modification to how the underlying statutory power operates; it simply exercises that power to impose a permanent ban on the named goods (section 65C(7))."},"complexity_factors":["Very narrow substantive content: single, specific product banned (gas masks containing asbestos).","Legal reference to section 65C(7) requires familiarity with the Trade Practices Act to understand legal effect and enforcement, adding minor legal complexity.","No procedural, enforcement, transitional or penalty details in the notice — leaves practical implementation questions unresolved.","Concrete identification of goods reduces ambiguity about scope, lowering interpretive complexity."],"plain_english_summary":"What this instrument does (mechanically)\n\n- The Minister for Consumer Affairs, using the power in section 65C(7) of the Trade Practices Act 1974, imposes a permanent ban on a specific kind of good. The notice states the banned goods are “Gas masks which contain asbestos.” (section 65C(7)).\n\nWho is affected\n\n- Anyone who makes, imports, supplies, sells, or otherwise deals in gas masks that contain asbestos. This includes manufacturers, importers, distributors, retailers and any commercial or institutional purchasers that trade in or supply those exact goods. End users who already hold such gas masks are also affected in the sense that the product is listed as permanently banned.\n\nWhy it matters and how it operates in practice\n\n- By declaring a permanent ban on a clearly specified kind of good, the notice removes that product from lawful supply under the Trade Practices Act power cited (section 65C(7)). Mechanically, the ban changes the legal status of the specified goods: the goods named in the notice may not lawfully be supplied in the market while the ban stands. The notice itself does not set out enforcement procedures, penalties, recall steps, timelines, or transitional arrangements — it states only that a permanent ban is imposed (section 65C(7)).\n\nStated purpose and what the text shows\n\n- The notice does not include an explanatory rationale or claims about objectives within its text; it simply records the imposition of a permanent ban on the identified goods under the statutory power (section 65C(7)).\n\nCosts, incentives and trade-offs (source-grounded observations)\n\n- Who pays: commercial parties dealing in the banned goods bear the immediate economic effect of losing the ability to lawfully supply that product. Consumers who hold such goods may see their holdings become unsaleable, depending on how enforcement is applied. The notice does not specify compensation mechanisms.\n\n- Incentives and behaviour changes: suppliers and traders of the specified gas masks will need to stop supplying them. Businesses will have an incentive to identify and withdraw stocks of the specified product or substitute alternative products that do not contain asbestos. Contracts for supply of the banned goods cannot be performed as originally agreed while the ban remains.\n\n- Compliance burden and administrative discretion: the notice itself does not describe compliance procedures, record-keeping, inspection or enforcement mechanisms. That omission means implementation will depend on the broader statutory framework and any enforcement action taken under the Trade Practices Act, but those details are not set out in this text (section 65C(7)).\n\n- Market effects and substitution: removing this specific product from the market concentrates the effect on the narrow set of firms and owners dealing in that product; demand for alternative gas masks or protective equipment is likely to substitute for the banned product, shifting sales to other suppliers. The notice does not address supply-side mitigation (e.g. permissible alternatives) or transitional relief.\n\nImplementation risks and uncertainty\n\n- The notice provides a clear, narrow ban but leaves open practical questions about enforcement, disposal or recall of existing stocks, and whether existing stocks in consumers’ possession are subject to any additional legal consequence. Those matters are not addressed in the text and therefore create implementation uncertainty for affected parties.\n\nRelevant citation\n\n- The action is taken under section 65C(7) of the Trade Practices Act 1974, and the notice text states: “IMPOSE a permanent ban on the goods of a kind specified below. Particulars of the goods: Gas masks which contain asbestos.” (section 65C(7))."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/trade-practices-act-1974-consumer-protection-notice-no-17-of-1993-imposition-of-a-permanent-ban-on-g","history":"/api/acts/trade-practices-act-1974-consumer-protection-notice-no-17-of-1993-imposition-of-a-permanent-ban-on-g/history","analysis":"/api/acts/trade-practices-act-1974-consumer-protection-notice-no-17-of-1993-imposition-of-a-permanent-ban-on-g/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/trade-practices-act-1974-consumer-protection-notice-no-17-of-1993-imposition-of-a-permanent-ban-on-g/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/trade-practices-act-1974-consumer-protection-notice-no-17-of-1993-imposition-of-a-permanent-ban-on-g/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/trade-practices-act-1974-consumer-protection-notice-no-17-of-1993-imposition-of-a-permanent-ban-on-g/documents"}}