Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances (Poppy Cultivation and Processing) Regulations 2024
1Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances (Poppy Cultivation and Processing) Regulations 2024
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16 Application for renewal of poppy processing licence 7
17 Prescribed minor terms, conditions, limitations and restrictions of a poppy processing licence 8
18 Prescribed fee for recovery of administrative costs of poppy processing licence 10
Part 4—General provisions applying to a poppy cultivation licence or poppy processing licence 11
19 Amendment of licences on application of licensed grower or licensed processor 11
Part 5—Inspection and enforcement 12
20 Access to alkaloid poppy register 12
21 Authorisation by the Secretary to access register 12
22 Fees for compliance and administrative costs 12
Part 6—Infringement notices 14
23 Infringement offences and penalties 14
Schedule 1—Infringement offences and infringement penalties 15
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Endnotes 17
1 General information 17
2 Table of Amendments 19
3 Explanatory details 20
Version No.001
Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances (Poppy Cultivation and Processing) Regulations 2024
Section 1 - Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances (Poppy Cultivation and Processing) Regulations 2024 - Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances (Poppy Cultivation and Processing) Regulations 2024 | Zoe
S.R. No. 21/2024
Version as at
14 April 2024
Part 1—Preliminary
1 Objective
The objective of these Regulations is to prescribe, for the purposes of Part IVB of the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981—
(a) the particulars an applicant for a poppy cultivation licence or a poppy processing licence must provide to the Secretary; and
(b) fees payable for licences and other costs; and
(c) the minor terms, conditions, limitations or restrictions that apply to a poppy cultivation licence or a poppy processing licence; and
(d) classes of persons who may access the alkaloid poppy register; and
(e) certain offences to be infringement offences within the meaning of the Infringements Act 2006 and the infringement penalties payable for those offences; and
(f) other matters necessary to be prescribed for that Part.
2 Authorising provisions
These Regulations are made under sections 69V and 132 of the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981.
3 Commencement
These Regulations come into operation on 14 April 2024.
4 Revocations
(1) The Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances (Poppy Cultivation and Processing) Regulations 2014[1] are revoked.
(2) The Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances (Poppy Cultivation and Processing) Amendment Regulations 2014[2] are revoked.
5 Definitions
In these Regulations—
authorised inspector means a person authorised under section 69R of the Act other than a police officer;
cultivation area means an area of land within the specified premises of a poppy cultivation licence where alkaloid poppies are cultivated;
the Act means the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981.
Part 2—Poppy cultivation licence
6 Poppy cultivation licence application fee
For the purposes of section 69O(3)(c) of the Act, the prescribed application fee is 5888 fee units.
7 Application for poppy cultivation licence
For the purposes of section 69O(3)(d) of the Act, the prescribed particulars are—
(a) the full name, date of birth, residential address and position of each employee to be employed to carry out activities in the business to be conducted under the poppy cultivation licence; and
(b) a copy of the employee identification certificate relating to each of those employees.
For the purposes of section 69OG(3)(d) of the Act, the prescribed renewal fee is 3925 fee units.
9 Application for renewal of poppy cultivation licence
For the purposes of section 69OG(3)(f) of the Act, the prescribed particulars are—
(a) the full name, date of birth, residential address and position of each current employee employed to carry out activities in the business conducted under the poppy cultivation licence; and
(b) a copy of the employee identification certificate relating to each of those employees.
10 Prescribed minor terms, conditions, limitations and restrictions of a poppy cultivation licence
For the purposes of section 69SD(1) of the Act, the prescribed minor terms, conditions, limitations and restrictions of a poppy cultivation licence are—
(a) that any gate that provides access to a cultivation area must be securely locked unless the licensed grower or an employee of the licensed grower authorised to undertake an activity under the poppy cultivation licence is present; and
(b) that a fence must be positioned and maintained between a cultivation area and livestock that are present on the specified premises or any adjacent land to prevent livestock from entering the cultivation area; and
(c) that a sign must be displayed at every gate of and along the fence or boundary of the cultivation area in accordance with the following requirements—
(i) that the sign include the words "danger", "prohibited area", "keep out", "trespassers prosecuted" and "illegal use of crop may cause death";
(ii) that the sign be of A3 size or greater;
(iii) that the sign be weather resistant;
(iv) that the sign be legible;
(v) that the sign be placed at intervals of 250 metres or less along the fence or boundary if it is adjacent to a public road; and
(d) that, within 7 days of the alkaloid poppies being harvested from a cultivation area, any alkaloid poppy material remaining in the cultivation area must be destroyed; and
(e) that any alkaloid poppy found growing in the specified premises that was not intentionally grown must be destroyed prior to flowering; and
(f) that a licensed grower must provide written notice to the Secretary within 14 days of any change to a current employee carrying out activities in the business conducted under the poppy cultivation licence and must include in the notice—
(i) the full name, date of birth, residential address and position of the employee the notice relates to; and
(ii) a copy of the employee identification certificate relating to that employee; and
(g) that a licensed grower must provide written notice to the Secretary within 14 days of any change to the risk management plan for a poppy cultivation licence.
11 Provision of contract to Secretary for registration
A licensed grower who requests registration of a contract under section 69TA(1) of the Act must give the Secretary a copy of the relevant contract.
12 Prescribed fee for recovery of administrative costs of poppy cultivation licence
(1) The prescribed fee for the recovery of administrative costs for a poppy cultivation licence is 5864 fee units.
(2) A fee under subregulation (1) is payable in any year that alkaloid poppies are cultivated at the specified premises described in a licence.
Part 3—Poppy processing licence
13 Poppy processing licence application fee
For the purposes of section 69P(3)(c) of the Act, the prescribed application fee is 5888 fee units.
14 Application for poppy processing licence
For the purposes of section 69P(3)(d) of the Act, the prescribed particulars are—
(a) the full name, date of birth, residential address and position of each employee to be employed to carry out activities in the business to be conducted under the poppy processing licence; and
(b) a copy of the employee identification certificate relating to each of those employees.
For the purposes of section 69PG(3)(e) of the Act, the prescribed renewal fee is 1963 fee units.
16 Application for renewal of poppy processing licence
For the purposes of section 69PG(3)(g) of the Act, the prescribed particulars are—
(a) the full name, date of birth, residential address and position of each employee employed to carry out activities in the business conducted under the poppy processing licence; and
(b) a copy of the employee identification certificate relating to each of those employees.
17 Prescribed minor terms, conditions, limitations and restrictions of a poppy processing licence
For the purposes of section 69SD(3) of the Act, the prescribed minor terms, conditions, limitations and restrictions of a poppy processing licence are—
(a) that the licensed processor must ensure that sufficient fencing exists on the specified premises to prevent access by a person other than a person permitted under the Act to access the specified premises; and
(b) that the specified premises and any buildings in the specified premises must be kept securely locked unless the licensed processor or an employee of the licensed processor who is employed to undertake activities authorised under the poppy processing licence is present at the specified premises; and
(c) that a sign must be displayed at all entry points and on the fence or boundary of the specified premises in accordance with the following requirements—
(i) that the sign include the words "danger", "prohibited area", "keep out" and "trespassers prosecuted";
(ii) that the sign be of A3 size or greater;
(iii) that the sign be weather resistant;
(iv) that the sign be legible; and
(d) that any alkaloid poppy found growing in the specified premises must be destroyed immediately; and
(e) that a licensed processor must provide written notice to the Secretary within 14 days of any change to a current employee carrying out activities in the business conducted under the poppy processing licence and must include in the notice—
(i) the full name, date of birth, residential address and position of the employee the notice relates to; and
(ii) a copy of the employee identification certificate relating to that employee; and
(f) that a licensed processor must provide written notice to the Secretary within 14 days of any change to the risk management plan for a poppy processing licence; and
(g) that a licensed processor who has a current contract with a licensed grower must report to the Secretary the following information within 28 days of—
(i) the completion of sowing alkaloid poppies on the specified premises of the licensed grower, the total number of hectares of alkaloid poppies planted;
(ii) the failure of an alkaloid poppy crop of the licensed grower, whether partial or whole—
(A) the date of the failure of the crop; and
(B) the total area in hectares of the alkaloid poppies that failed;
(iii) the harvesting of alkaloid poppies on the specified premises of the licensed grower—
(A) the total area in hectares of alkaloid poppies harvested; and
(B) the date the crop was harvested; and
(C) the total quantity of poppy straw harvested in kilograms.
18 Prescribed fee for recovery of administrative costs of poppy processing licence
The prescribed fee for the recovery of administrative costs for a poppy processing licence is—
(a) 81127 fee units payable on the issuing of a licence under section 69PB(2) of the Act; and
(b) 81127 fee units payable on the renewal of the licence under section 69PI(2) of the Act.
Part 4—General provisions applying to a poppy cultivation licence or poppy processing licence
19 Amendment of licences on application of licensed grower or licensed processor
For the purposes of section 69Q(5)(b) of the Act, the prescribed fee for the amendment of a poppy cultivation licence or a poppy processing licence is 1308 fee units.
Part 5—Inspection and enforcement
20 Access to alkaloid poppy register
For the purposes of section 69TB(1) of the Act, the classes of prescribed persons are—
(a) inspectors; and
(b) persons employed to administer or maintain the alkaloid poppy register; and
(c) contractors or subcontractors, or employees of contractors or subcontractors.
21 Authorisation by the Secretary to access register
An authorisation made by the Secretary under section 69TB(1) of the Act must be in writing.
22 Fees for compliance and administrative costs
(1) An authorised inspector is authorised and required to impose fees and charges at the rate of 1⋅45 fee units for each quarter of an hour or part of an hour spent providing the following services—
(a) inspecting any place for the cultivation or processing of alkaloid poppies;
(b) monitoring compliance with the terms and conditions of a poppy cultivation licence or a poppy processing licence;
(c) taking, examining or testing of any sample or specimen;
(d) inspection and examination of premises, alkaloid poppies, poppy straw, vehicles, machinery, documents and records.
(2) When calculating the time spent providing a service under subregulation (1), the time spent by an authorised inspector travelling between where the service is provided and the authorised inspector's principal work location is to be charged at a rate of 208 fee units for each quarter of an hour or part of an hour travelled, with the maximum amount to be charged for travel by an authorised inspector to provide a service being 1664 fee units.
Part 6—Infringement notices
23 Infringement offences and penalties
(1) For the purposes of section 69RQ(1) of the Act, an offence against a section of the Act specified in Column 2 of Schedule 1 is prescribed as an infringement offence.
(2) For the purposes of section 69RR of the Act, the prescribed infringement penalty for an infringement offence specified in Column 2 of Schedule 1 is the penalty specified in Column 3 of Schedule 1 for that infringement offence.
Schedule 1—Infringement offences and infringement penalties
Regulation 23
Column 1<br>Item
Column 2<br>Infringement offence
Column 3<br>Infringement penalty
1
An offence against section 69S of the Act
10 penalty units
2
An offence against section 69SA of the Act
10 penalty units
3
An offence against section 69SB(1) of the Act constituted by a failure to report information specified in section 69SB(2)(a) of that Act
10 penalty units
4
An offence against section 69SB(1) of the Act constituted by a failure to report information specified in section 69SB(2)(b) of that Act
10 penalty units
5
An offence against section 69SB(1) of the Act constituted by a failure to report information specified in section 69SB(2)(f) of that Act
10 penalty units
6
An offence against section 69SC of the Act
5 penalty units
7
An offence against section 69SD(1) of the Act
5 penalty units
8
An offence against section 69SD(3) of the Act
5 penalty units
9
An offence against section 69SE(1) of the Act
10 penalty units
10
An offence against section 69SE(2) of the Act
10 penalty units
11
An offence against section 69SE(3) of the Act
10 penalty units
12
An offence against section 69SE(4) of the Act
10 penalty units
13
An offence against section 69SF(1) of the Act
6 penalty units
14
An offence against section 69SF(2) of the Act
6 penalty units
15
An offence against section 69SG(1) of the Act
6 penalty units
16
An offence against section 69SG(2) of the Act
6 penalty units
17
An offence against section 69SH(1) of the Act
6 penalty units
18
An offence against section 69SH(2) of the Act
6 penalty units
19
An offence against section 69SK(1) of the Act
6 penalty units
20
An offence against section 69SK(2) of the Act
6 penalty units
21
An offence against section 69SL(1) of the Act
10 penalty units
22
An offence against section 69SL(2) of the Act
10 penalty units
23
An offence against section 69SM of the Act
10 penalty units
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Endnotes
1 General information
See www.legislation.vic.gov.au for Victorian Bills, Acts and current Versions of legislation and up-to-date legislative information.
The Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances (Poppy Cultivation and Processing) Regulations 2024, S.R. No. 21/2024 were made on 9 April 2024 by the Governor in Council under sections 69V and 132 of the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981, No. 9719/1981 and came into operation on 14 April 2024: regulation 3.
The Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances (Poppy Cultivation and Processing) Regulations 2024 will sunset 10 years after the day of making on 9 April 2034 (see section 5 of the Subordinate Legislation Act 1994).
INTERPRETATION OF LEGISLATION ACT 1984 (ILA)
Style changes
Section 54A of the ILA authorises the making of the style changes set out in Schedule 1 to that Act.
References to ILA s. 39B
Sidenotes which cite ILA s. 39B refer to section 39B of the ILA which provides that where an undivided regulation, rule or clause of a Schedule is amended by the insertion of one or more subregulations, subrules or subclauses the original regulation, rule or clause becomes subregulation, subrule or subclause (1) and is amended by the insertion of the expression "(1)" at the beginning of the original regulation, rule or clause.
Interpretation
As from 1 January 2001, amendments to section 36 of the ILA have the following effects:
• Headings
All headings included in a Statutory Rule which is made on or after
1 January 2001 form part of that Statutory Rule. Any heading inserted in a Statutory Rule which was made before 1 January 2001, by a Statutory Rule made on or after 1 January 2001, forms part of that Statutory Rule.
This includes headings to Parts, Divisions or Subdivisions in a Schedule; Orders; Parts into which an Order is divided; clauses; regulations; rules; items; tables; columns; examples; diagrams; notes or forms.
See section 36(1A)(2A)(2B).
• Examples, diagrams or notes
All examples, diagrams or notes included in a Statutory Rule which is made on or after 1 January 2001 form part of that Statutory Rule. Any examples, diagrams or notes inserted in a Statutory Rule which was made before 1 January 2001, by a Statutory Rule made on or after 1 January 2001, form part of that Statutory Rule. See section 36(3A).
• Punctuation
All punctuation included in a Statutory Rule which is made on or after
1 January 2001 forms part of that Statutory Rule. Any punctuation inserted in a Statutory Rule which was made before 1 January 2001, by a Statutory Rule made on or after 1 January 2001, forms part of that Statutory Rule.
See section 36(3B).
• Provision numbers
All provision numbers included in a Statutory Rule form part of that Statutory Rule, whether inserted in the Statutory Rule before, on or after
1 January 2001. Provision numbers include regulation numbers, rule numbers, subregulation numbers, subrule numbers, paragraphs and subparagraphs. See section 36(3C).
• Location of "legislative items"
A "legislative item" is a penalty, an example or a note. As from 13 October 2004, a legislative item relating to a provision of a Statutory Rule is taken to be at the foot of that provision even if it is preceded or followed by another legislative item that relates to that provision. For example, if a penalty at the foot of a provision is followed by a note, both of these legislative items will be regarded as being at the foot of that provision. See section 36B.
• Other material
Any explanatory memorandum, table of provisions, endnotes, index and other material printed after the Endnotes does not form part of a Statutory Rule. See section 36(3)(3D)(3E).
2 Table of Amendments
There are no amendments made to the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances (Poppy Cultivation and Processing) Regulations 2024 by statutory rules, subordinate instruments and Acts.
3 Explanatory details
Reg. 4(1): S.R. No. 15/2014 as amended by S.R. No. 95/2014. ↑
Reg. 4(2): S.R. No. 95/2014.
——
Fee Units
These Regulations provide for fees by reference to fee units within the meaning of the Monetary Units Act 2004.
The amount of the fee is to be calculated, in accordance with section 7 of that Act, by multiplying the number of fee units applicable by the value of a fee unit.
The value of a fee unit for the financial year commencing 1 July 2023 is $15.90. The amount of the calculated fee may be rounded to the nearest 10 cents.
The value of a fee unit for future financial years is to be fixed by the Treasurer under section 5 of the Monetary Units Act 2004. The value of a fee unit for a financial year must be published in the Government Gazette and a Victorian newspaper before 1 June in the preceding financial year.
Penalty Units
These Regulations provide for penalties by reference to penalty units within the meaning of section 110 of the Sentencing Act 1991. The amount of the penalty is to be calculated, in accordance with section 7 of the Monetary Units Act 2004, by multiplying the number of penalty units applicable by the value of a penalty unit.
The value of a penalty unit for the financial year commencing 1 July 2023 is $192.31. The amount of the calculated penalty may be rounded to the nearest dollar.
The value of a penalty unit for future financial years is to be fixed by the Treasurer under section 5 of the Monetary Units Act 2004. The value of a penalty unit for a financial year must be published in the Government Gazette and a Victorian newspaper before 1 June in the preceding financial year. ↑