This Memorandum refers to the Sunbeds Bill as amended at consideration stage in the Northern Ireland Assembly on 8 February 2011 (Bill 18/09)
SUNBEDS BILL
EXPLANATORY AND FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
INTRODUCTION
1. This Explanatory and Financial Memorandum has been prepared by the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety in order to assist the reader of the Bill and to help inform debate on it. It does not form part of the Bill and has not been endorsed by the Assembly.
2. The Memorandum needs to be read in conjunction with the Bill. It is not, and is not meant to be, a comprehensive description of the Bill. So where a clause or part of a clause or schedule does not seem to require an explanation or comment, none is given.
BACKGROUND AND POLICY OBJECTIVES
3. There has been expert advice available for many years to the effect that the cosmetic use of sunbeds, especially by children, should be discouraged because of the associated increased risk of skin cancer and other health problems. Over a 25 year period, malignant melanoma skin cancer cases have nearly trebled. Skin cancer is now the most common cancer in Northern Ireland and accounts for 28% of all individuals diagnosed with cancer.
4. The increased skin cancer rate is not entirely due to the use of sunbeds, but also to direct exposure to the suns ultraviolet rays. However, there is now substantial evidence of the increased risks caused by sunbed use. Research shows that using sunbeds before the age of 35 can increase the risk of developing melanoma skin cancer by up to 75% and the mortality from melanoma due to sunbed use alone is estimated to be about 100 deaths per year in the UK.
5. The primary policy objective of the Department which underpins the Sunbed Bill is the prevention of the use of sunbeds by persons under 18 years of age. The Bill is also intended to ensure that those over 18 years of age who intend to use sunbeds are better informed about the health risks of using sunbeds. The purpose of the Sunbed Bill is to provide a clear legislative framework to which all sunbed premises will be required to adhere.
CONSULTATION
6. A formal consultation on the policy proposals informing the draft Bill was carried out during the period from from 19 November 2009 until 19 February 2010. The purpose of the consultation was to seek the views on whether and by what means the sunbed industry should be regulated in Northern Ireland. It provided background and information on the recognised risks factors linking sunbed usage and skin cancer and invited views on a range of possible measures for regulating the industry.
7. A total of 46 consultation responses were received. In general, there were many positive comments that welcomed the proposals. A range of issues and suggestions were also highlighted and have been extremely helpful in informing consideration of the detail of the proposals.
OPTIONS CONSIDERED
8. Although the consultation did not propose a licensing scheme for the sunbed industry, there was strong support for licensing in the responses and from the Members when it was introduced into the Assembly. As a result, the Department included a power in the Bill to include a licensing scheme by way of regulations. This allows an opportunity for further consideration and consultation before such a scheme would be introduced.
10. The policy proposals informing the Bill should result in a significant reduction of persons under 18 years of age being able to use sunbeds, and should ensure that those adults intending to use sunbeds do so fully informed of the risks to their health. The measures should also ensure a positive impact on public health in the longer term, especially amongst young people.
OVERVIEW
11. The Bill has 19 clauses and 2 Schedules. It comprises 3 headings:-
Offences – consists of 10 clauses and covers the prohibition of the use, sale or hire of a sunbed to persons under the age of 18 with an exemption for medical treatment. It places a duty on operators of sunbed premises to display an information notice. It places a duty on sunbed operators and those who hire or sell sunbeds to provide sunbed users, hirers and buyers with information about the risks associated with sunbed use. It places a duty on operators of sunbed premises and those who hire or sell sunbeds to make protective eyewear available to sunbed users. It also places a duty on sunbed operators and those who hire or sell sunbeds to secure that those who allow people to use sunbeds are trained to a required standard and that all sunbeds for use in sunbeds premises, for hire or for sale meet required standards.
Enforcement – comprises 4 clauses and relates to the enforcement of provisions of the Bill, outlines fixed penalties for particular offences, deals with the obstruction of officers in exercise of their functions under the Bill and provides for the registration or licensing of sunbed premises.
General – consists of 5 clauses and deals with offences committed by corporate bodies and makes provisions in respect of subordinate legislation. It also sets out the title, commencement dates and includes interpretation provisions.
12. Schedule 1 sets out the enforcement powers available to authorised officers and Schedule 2 deals with fixed penalties.
COMMENTARY ON CLAUSES
13. A commentary on the provisions follows below. Comments are not given where the wording is self-explanatory
Clause 1: Prohibition on allowing use of sunbeds by persons under 18
Provides that is an offence for an operator of sunbed premises to allow a person under the age of 18 to use a sunbed on the sunbed operator’s premises or to allow a person who is under 18 to be present in a ‘restricted zone’ on those premises. It also describes circumstances which would constitute the operator of sunbed premises as having taken all reasonable precautions and exercised all due diligence to avoid the commission of such an offence and describes a ‘restricted zone’.
Clause 2: Prohibition on sale or hire of sunbeds to persons under 18
Provides that is an offence for a person to sell or hire a sunbed to a person under the age of 18. It also describes circumstances which would constitute the seller or hirer as having taken all reasonable precautions and exercised all due diligence to avoid the commission of such an offence.
Clause 3: Prohibition on allowing unsupervised use of sunbeds
Provides that is an offence for an operator of sunbed premises to allow a person under the age of 18 to use a sunbed without supervision on the sunbed operator’s premises. It also provides that there is a defence for the operator of sunbed premises to prove that they took all reasonable precautions and exercised all due diligence to avoid the commission of such an offence.
Clause 4: Duty to provide information to sunbed users, or buyers, etc
Places a duty on operators of sunbed premises and hirers/sellers of sunbeds to provide prescribed information to those who seek to use, buy or hire a sunbed. It also provides that failure to provide such information is an offence.
Clause 5: Duty to display information notice
Places a duty on operators of sunbed premises to display a prescribed information notice in a position which is readily visible to anyone proposing to use a sunbed on the premises. It also provides that failure to display such an information notice is an offence.
Clause 6: Prohibition on provision or display of other information
Provides that it is an offence for a an operator of sunbed premises from providing or displaying any material containing statements relating to the health effects of sunbed use other than information that may be prescribed by the Department.
Clause 7: Protective eyewear
Places a duty on operators of sunbed premises and hirers/sellers of sunbeds to ensure that protective eyewear is made available to those who seek to use, hire or buy a sunbed and that failure to do so is an offence.
Clause 8: Requirements in relation to training
Places a duty on operators of sunbed premises and hirers /sellers of sunbeds to secure that those who allow people to use sunbeds are trained to a required standard as may be prescribed. Failure to do so is an offence. It also provides that there is a defence for the operator of sunbed premises, hirers and sellers of sunbeds to prove that they took all reasonable precautions and exercised all due diligence to avoid the commission of such an offence.
Clause 9: Requirements in relation to sunbeds
Places a duty on operators of sunbed premises and hirers /sellers of sunbeds to only make available for use, hire or sale sunbeds which meet such requirements as may be prescribed. Failure to do so is an offence . It also provides that there is a defence for the operator of sunbed premises, hirers and sellers of sunbeds to prove that they took all reasonable precautions and exercised all due diligence to avoid the commission of such an offence.
Clause 10: Exemption for medical treatment
Provides for an exemption for offences under this Act where a sunbed is used for the purposes of medical treatment under the supervision or direction of a registered medical practitioner and the sunbed is in, or provided by, a healthcare establishment (as defined) and the sunbed is made available only for the purpose of medical treatment.
Clause 11: Enforcement by district councils
Places a duty on district councils to enforce the provisions of the Bill in their area. It also introduces Schedule 1 which makes provision about the powers of authorised officers.
Clause 12: Fixed penalties for certain offences
Provides that authorised officers may give a fixed penalty notice to persons they have reason to believe have committed an offence. It also introduces Schedule 2 which makes further provision about fixed penalties.
Clause 13: Obstruction of officers
Provides that anyone who intentionally obstructs an authorised officer acting in the exercise of the officer’s function under this Bill commits an offence.
Clause 14: Registration or licensing of sunbed premises or operators, etc.
Provides that regulations may allow district councils to register or licence premises which are being used, or which it is the intention to use, as sunbed premises; or to licence operators of such premises. It also provides for registration or licensing of premises to be used for the hire or sale of sunbeds, or of the persons who hire or sell sunbeds. Regulations would furthermore allow district councils to prohibit the use of premises which are not registered or licensed in compliance with regulations.
Clause 15: Offences by bodies corporate, etc.
Provides that, if an offence under this Bill is committed with the consent of connivance of, or is attributable to the neglect of a partner of a body corporate then that partner, as well as the partnership, is guilty of the offence.
Clause 16: Regulations
Contains provision about the required procedures for making subordinate legislation under the Bill.
Clause 17: Interpretation
Self explanatory.
Clause 18: Commencement
Provides that the main provisions of the Bill come into operation on a later day as appointed by the Department.
Clause 19: Short title.
Self explanatory.
FINANCIAL EFFECTS OF THE BILL
14. The Bill would not impose any significant additional costs to the Department or sunbed premises and the enforcement would not have any significant additional costs for local district councils.
HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES
15. The provisions of the Bill are compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights.
EQUALITY IMPACT ASSESSMENT
16. The aim of the measures within the Bill is to protect the public’s health by restricting certain commercial operations that are injurious to health. The Department carried out an equality screening exercise and concluded that the measures will improve the health for all sunbed users irrespective of any correlation with the nine Section 75 distinctions. Regarding sunbed operators, there was no evidence of any correlation with any of the Section 75 distinctions. As a result, it was decided that a full Equality Impact Assessment (EQIA) would not be required.
17. A number of specific questions on Section 75 issues were included in the consultation document. None of the responses indicated that any of the proposed measures would have an adverse impact on the nine Section 75 groups of people.
SUMMARY OF THE REGULATORY IMPACT ASSESSMENT
18. The Department had given small businesses and a wide range of stakeholders an opportunity to make comments and suggestions during the formal public consultation on the Regulation of the Sunbed Industry in Northern Ireland. However, a consultation on the Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA) was also carried out by the Department during the period from 11 February 2010 until 11 March 2010.
19.As a result, the Department is content that implementation of the measures in the Bill would not have any significant additional costs to the Department or sunbed premises and the enforcement would not have any significant additional costs for local district councils.
LEGISLATIVE COMPETENCE
20. The Minister for Health, Social Services and Public Safety had made the following statement under section 9 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998:
“In my view the Sunbeds Bill would be within the legislative competence of the Northern Ireland Assembly.”