18AA   Director-General may restrict possession or supply

(1)  In this section, relevant person means a medical practitioner, a nurse, a midwife, a dentist, an optometrist, a pharmacist, a podiatrist or a veterinary practitioner.

(2)  The Director-General may, by order in writing served on a relevant person, prohibit or restrict the person from possessing, supplying or prescribing a substance specified in Schedule 2, 3 or 4 of the Poisons List that the person:

(a)  possesses, supplies or prescribes in the practice of the person’s profession as a relevant person, or

(b)  is licensed or authorised by or under this Act to possess, supply or prescribe.

(3)  Such an order may be made for any one or more of the following reasons:

(a)  the person has requested or agreed in writing to the making of the order,

(b)  the person is convicted of an offence against this Act or the regulations made under this Act, or of an offence against the Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act 1985 or the regulations made under that Act, or an order has been made against the person under section 10 (1) of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 in respect of such an offence,

(c)  the person has, in the opinion of the Director-General, failed to comply with any prohibition, restriction or condition imposed on the person by an order under this section,

(d)  the person is, in the opinion of the Director-General, a person who should be restricted or prohibited from possessing, supplying or prescribing such a substance for the purpose of protecting the life, or the physical or mental health, of that or any other person (whether or not any other such person is identifiable).

(4)  An order that restricts a person as referred to in subsection (2):

(a)  may be made unconditionally or subject to conditions, and

(b)  may apply generally or be limited in its application by reference to specified exceptions or factors, and

(c)  may apply differently according to different factors of a specified kind.

(5)  An order under this section must specify the grounds on which it is made.

(6)  An order under this section takes effect:

(a)  in the case of an order made on the grounds referred to in subsection (3) (d), when the order is served on the person against whom it is made, or

(b)  in any other case, on the date specified in the order in that regard.

(7)  Except in the case of an order that is made on the ground referred to in subsection (3) (a), the date referred to in subsection (6) (b) must be a date occurring not less than 14 days after the date on which the order is served on the person against whom it is made.

(8)  A person must not contravene any order in force under this section.

Maximum penalty: 20 penalty units.