Section 48 and Schedule 18: Powers to act for the protection of public health: Northern Ireland
This Schedule inserts various provisions as Part 1A into the Public Health Act (Northern Ireland) 1967. It provides a power for the Department of Health in Northern Ireland to make regulations to allow for measures to be introduced to help delay or prevent further transmission of COVID-19, which presents or could present significant harm to human health.
	The Schedule provides powers that enable the Department of Health in Northern Ireland to make regulations for preventing danger to public health from conveyances (or the persons or articles on those conveyances) arriving at any place or for preventing the spread of COVID-19 by conveyances leaving any place. It also provides a power for regulations to give effect to international agreements or arrangements, for example World Health Organisation recommendations. There is also a power to make regulations to prevent, protect against, control or provide a public health response to the incidence or spread of COVID-19 in Northern Ireland.
	Compulsory medical treatment, including vaccination, is excluded from the ambit of the regulation-making powers.
	Powers are also given to magistrates’ courts to order health measures in relation to people, things and premises. Provision is made in relation to the evidence the Department of Health must make available to the court.
	Only the Public Health Agency may apply for an order but an affected person, in addition to the Public Health Agency or any other authority with the function of executing or enforcing the order in question, can apply for the order to be varied or revoked.
	It is an offence to fail to comply, without reasonable excuse, with a restriction or requirement imposed by or under an order of a magistrates’ court or to wilfully obstruct anyone executing the order.
	The Assembly procedures for making regulations under this Part in different circumstances are set out. Regulations of a kind to which draft affirmative procedure would normally apply may be made and brought into effect immediately if they contain a declaration that the Department of Health in Northern Ireland is of the opinion that it is necessary by reason of urgency for them to be made without a draft being approved under that procedure.
	There are powers of entry for a person authorised by the Public Health Agency to carry out functions and it is an offence to willfully obstruct an authorised officer in execution of such powers.
	Offences are also created for bodies corporate. There is a special extended time limit of up to 3 years for prosecutions for these new offences when certain conditions are met.
	The territorial extent and application of the section and the Schedule is Northern Ireland only.