PRINTERS AND PUBLISHERS (AMENDMENT) BILL

Order for Second Reading read.

6.00 p.m.

The Minister for Culture (Mr S. Rajaratnam): Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a Second time."

Hitherto, under the Printers and Publishers Ordinance, only books printed in Singapore must be sent to the National Library. It has been found that the law is defective in that books printed outside Singapore by local publishers do not come within the scope of the Ordinance. In that way, many valuable publications are lost to the National Library and other institutions which are entitled to them. This defect also enables publishers to go outside Singapore for their printing.

This Bill, therefore, seeks to remedy this defect by bringing within the scope of the Ordinance all books published in Singapore, whether printed here or not. The onus of submitting the printed publications or books to the National Library now rests with the publisher and not the printer, for it is obvious that if books printed outside Singapore but published in Singapore are to come within the scope of this Ordinance, then it must be the publisher and not the printer who must be responsible for delivering the publications or books to the National Library.

Apart from shifting the onus from the printer to the publisher, and from bringing all locally published material within the scope of the law, this Bill also requires the publisher to deliver free of charge six copies of any book printed or published in Singapore to the National Library instead of the present three copies. This will enable the National Library not only to keep a complete record of all books published here but also to send the books to such institutions as will benefit by having such books.

The fine for default under the Ordinance has also been increased. It should also be noted that publications printed by the Government Printer or on behalf of the Government are now not exempted from the Ordinance, and six copies should be delivered to the National Library as in the case of all other publications by members of the public.

Sir, I beg to move.

Question put, and agreed to.

Bill accordingly read a Second time and committed to a Committee of the whole Assembly.

Assembly immediately resolved itself into a Committee on the Bill. -[Mr Rajaratnam].

Bill considered in Committee; reported without amendment; read a Third time and passed.