The Director of Quarantine has forwarded the following memorandum asking for advice:

I should be glad of your advice upon the following points in connection with the Quarantine Act:

1. Under section 26A (2) it is provided that a prescribed fee shall be paid. Would it be possible, in making the regulation prescribing this fee, to specify that the fee may be such as may be fixed by the Minister from time to time, otherwise it will be necessary to prescribe an approved fee adaptable to the conditions obtaining at the different ports.
2. At the present time calf vaccine is being sold by the Department, but it is understood that such sale is not properly legal, unless a regulation prescribing the charges, is made. If this be done would it be possible to specify that the charges shall be such as may be fixed by the Minister from time to time.

Section 26A (2) of the Act is as follows:

On the request of the master, owner, or agent of a vessel subject to quarantine, and on payment of the prescribed fee, the vessel may, with the approval of a prescribed quarantine officer, be taken for inspection to some other place instead of to the mooring ground for vessels subject to quarantine. In my opinion the fee to be fixed for removal of a vessel under this sub-section must be fixed by the Governor-General by regulation. It would not be sufficient merely to purport to confer on the Minister power to fix the fee.

As regards the second question, there appears to be no provision in the Act dealing with the sale of vaccine. I think therefore that seeing that the Department prepares vaccine there is no objection to its disposing of it at such prices as it thinks fit. Accordingly a regulation may be made specifying that the charges shall be such as are fixed from time to time.

[Vol. 13, p. 323]

1. This opinion is unsigned in the Opinion Book, but it is attributed to Mr Garran.