ANNEX TO EXPLANATORY NOTES: PATENTS ACT 2004:AMENDMENTS TO THE PATENTS ACT 1977 Section 22 – Information prejudicial to defence of realm national security or safety of public
(1)Where an application for a patent is filed in the Patent Office (whether under this Act or any treaty or international convention to which the United Kingdom is a party and whether before or after the appointed day) and it appears to the comptroller that the application contains information of a description notified to him by the Secretary of State as being information the publication of which might be prejudicial to the defence of the realm national security, the comptroller may give directions prohibiting or restricting the publication of that information or its communication to any specified person or description of persons.
[ Subsections (2) to (4) are unchanged ]
(5)Where the comptroller gives directions under this section with respect to any application, he shall give notice of the application and of the directions to the Secretary of State, and the following provisions shall then have effect -
(a)the Secretary of State shall, on receipt of the notice, consider whether the publication of the application or the publication or communication of the information in question would be prejudicial to the defence of the realm national security or the safety of the public;
(b)if the Secretary of State determines under paragraph (a) above that the publication of the application or the publication or communication of that information would be prejudicial to the safety of the public, he shall notify the comptroller who shall continue his directions under subsection (2) above until they are revoked under paragraph (e) below;
(c)if the Secretary of State determines under paragraph (a) above that the publication of the application or the publication or communication of that information would be prejudicial to the defence of the realm national security or the safety of the public, he shall (unless a notice under paragraph (d) below has previously been given by the Secretary of State to the comptroller) reconsider that question during the period of nine months from the date of filing the application and at least once in every subsequent period of twelve months;
(d)if on consideration of an application at any time it appears to the Secretary of State that the publication of the application or the publication or communication of the information contained in it would not, or would no longer, be prejudicial to the defence of the realm national security or the safety of the public, he shall give notice to the comptroller to that effect; and
(e)on receipt of such a notice the comptroller shall revoke the directions and may, subject to such conditions (if any) as he thinks fit, extend the time for doing anything required or authorised to be done by or under this Act in connection with the application, whether or not that time has previously expired.
(6)The Secretary of State may do the following for the purpose of enabling him to decide the question referred to in subsection (5)(c) above –
(a)where the application contains information relating to the production or use of atomic energy or research into matters connected with such production or use, he may at any time do one or both of the following, that is to say, inspect and authorise the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority to inspect the application and any documents sent to the comptroller in connection with it
(i)inspect the application and any documents sent to the comptroller in connection with it;
(ii)authorise a government body with responsibility for the production of atomic energy or for research into matters connected with its production or use, or a person appointed by such a government body, to inspect the application and any documents sent to the comptroller in connection with it;
and
(b)in any other case, he may at any time after (or, with the applicant’s consent, before) the end of the period prescribed for the purposes of section 16 above inspect the application and any such documents;
and where that Authority are authorised under paragraph (a) above they shall as soon as practicable report on their inspection to the Secretary of State a government body or a person appointed by a government body carries out an inspection which the body or person is authorised to carry out under paragraph (a) above, the body or (as the case may be) the person shall report on the inspection to the Secretary of State as soon as practicable.
[ Subsequent subsections are unchanged ]