The substances listed below are all currently controlled in some way under UK law. It may be necessary to do one or more of the following prior to bringing any of these controlled substances onto University premises: acquire a licence from, notify and/or be inspected by an Enforcing Authority; set up special containment facilities; implement special security procedures; notify Safety Services. Failure to do so could constitute a criminal offence and lay the University, or the individual responsible for the breach, open to prosecution. If you are in any doubt about the status of a substance you are planning to acquire please consult the SLS H&S Information Officer for advice.

• Substances regulated under the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act
• Chemical Weapons and Chemical Weapons Precursors
• Controlled Drugs
• Drug Precursors
• Human Pathogens and Human Material/Samples
• Animal Pathogens and Carriers of Animal Pathogens
• Plant Pests and Plant Material
• Genetically Modified Organisms and Microorganisms
• Radioactive Substances
• Explosives

Substances regulated under the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act

(updated 16/1/2017)

• Prior authorisation must be obtained before ordering any toxin, microorganism or nucleic acid sequence listed in Schedule 5 of the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001. In the first instance, the Home Office must be emailed and a notification form completed and returned - click here for further details. Our local Counter-Terrorism Security Advisor will then be notified and will contact SLS Safety to arrange a site visit. The CTSA will decide if current security arrangements are adequate or if additional measures need to be implemented.
• Note that the Schedule displayed on the legislation.gov.uk website at present does not automatically show the changes made to Schedule 5 by the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 (Modification) Order 2012. Clostridium perfringens, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Cladophialophora bantiana and Cryptococcus neoformans were all removed from Schedule 5 and SARS Coronavirus was added.
• General guidnace on securing hazardous substances that may be used by terrorists - including Schedule 5 substances, explosive precursor chemicals and certain poisons - can be found on the GOV.UK website.

Chemical Weapons & Chemical Weapons Precursors

• A licence must be obtained from the UK Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) National Authority before acquiring any Schedule 1 substance.
• An annual return must be submitted to Safety Services for all Schedule 2 and 3 substances.
  • Details required for Schedule 2 chemicals: name and amount produced, processed (ie chemical bonds are not broken), consumed (ie chemical bonds are broken), imported and exported.
  • Details required for Schedule 3 chemicals: name and amount produced, imported and exported.
  • Note - purchase from a reputable supplier is not considered import.
• SLS has a current Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) Open General Licence (OGL) to hold and to use a limited quantity of CWC Schedule 1 chemicals.
• Useful links:
  • UK CWC NA Chemical Weapons Guide
  • UK CWC NA Inspection Guide
  • Chemical Weapons Act 1996
  • Schedule 1 substances
  • Schedule 2 substances and Schedule 3 substances (see pages 11 and 12 of pdf file)
  • UK CWC National Authority declarations database

Controlled Drugs

• University research departments do not require licences to possess and supply drugs in Schedules 2, 3, 4 Part I, 4 Part II and Schedule 5, but they do require licences to produce any of those drugs and to produce, possess and/or supply drugs in Schedule 1. This is as per the 'Licensing exceptions: hospitals and universities' section on the Home Office Web Site.
  • Click here for a list of the most commonly encountered controlled drugs showing their respective classifications under the Drugs Act 2005, the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971and the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001.
  • Controlled drugs must be securely stored and special security measures will be required for Schedule 1 drugs.
  • Use and disposal details must be recorded for all controlled drugs. All relevant documents must be kept for 3 years after final use/disposal.
  • Chemical suppliers will probably ask for an End User Statement or Declaration to be signed and submitted before they will ship a controlled drug, regardless of which Schedule it is assigned to, e.g. Sigms'a Form J.
  • Further information can be found on the Home Office web site.
• We have no licences in place for Controlled Drugs at present.

Drug Precursors

• A Home Office licence must be obtained before acquiring any Category 1 drug precursor. Special security measures are also necessary.
• A Home Office licence is NOT required for Category 2 drug precursors.
• Click here for further information.
• We have no licences in place for drug precursors at present.

Human Pathogens and Human Material/Samples

• The SLS H&S Information Officer/Safety Services must be notified in advance of human pathogens being brought onto the premises. The Heath & Safety Executive (HSE) must also be notified in the case of Hazard Group 3 pathogens and the following Hazard Group 2 pathogens: Bordetella pertussis, Corynebacterium diphtheriae, Neisseria meningitidis. Hazard Group 4 pathogens are strictly prohibited.
• Ethical approval from the East of Scotland Research Ethics Service Research Ethics Committee, or proof that a collaborator has appropriate ethical approval, may be required before human material/samples are brought on site. Click here for further details.

Animal Pathogens and Carriers of Animal Pathogens

(last updated 06/12/11) OUT OF DATE; UNDER REVIEW

• Under the Specified Animal Pathogens (Scotland) Order 2009, a licence, issued by the Scottish Government or the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), is required before we can take possession of an animal pathogen listed in Part I of the Schedule or any carrier in which such a pathogen is present.
  • The Scottish Government issue the licence if the material is arriving at a Scottish port and DEFRA issue it if the material is landing in England.
  • It usually takes 5 working days from receipt of the application for the licence to be granted but it may be possible to get a 24hr turnaround in special cases.
• In addition to this, the importation of Animal Pathogens Order 1980 (as amended) prohibits the importation into Great Britain from outside the European Community of animal pathogens or carriers without a licence issued by Scottish Government /DEFRA.
  • An 'Animal Pathogen' means: any collection or culture of organisms or any derivative of such, which may cause disease in cattle, sheep, goats or other ruminants, horses, swine, domestic fowls, turkeys, geese, ducks, guinea fowls, pheasants, partridges or quail.
  • A 'Carrier' means: any living creature except man, which may carry or transmit an animal pathogen or the tissue, cell culture, body fluid, excreta, carcase or parts of carcase of such creature by or by means of which an animal pathogen may be carried or transmitted.
  • Note! Recent experience has shown that a licence is required (1) if the package being imported contains culture medium containing foetal calf serum and (2) for purified animal antibodies, unless the shipment is from an established commercial supplier.
  • In Jan 2009 the Scottish Government asked us to complete a full licence application in order to get mouse hybridoma cells shipped from Japan. Just to confuse the issue, DEFRA were were willing to issue a general import licence covering cell lines but not primary cultures. Best policy is to enquire on a case by case basis.
• DEFRA contact details are on the DEFRA web site.
• Scottish Government contact details are on the web site.
• We currently have one SAPO licence in place for work with animal pathogens: Licence SAPO/2012/04, held by Alan Fairlamb and expiring on 1/9/2017.

Plant Pests and Plant Material

• It may be necessary to obtain a licence from the Scottish Agricultural Science Agency (SASA) before bringing a plant pest onto the premises. SASA licences have to be renewed annually. 'Plant pest' means pests of and harmful organisms liable to infect plants or plant products which belong to the animal or plant kingdoms, or which are viruses, mycoplasmas or other pathogens and includes genetically modified plant pests.If a plant pest is to be genetically modified in any way, HSE notification will also be necessary. A licence or certificate may also be required for the import of plant material or soil samples originating from outwith the UK.
• We have two current Plant Health Licences in place at present, both belonging to PIs in the Division of Molecular Microbiology.

Genetically Modified Organisms and Microorganism

• Premises must be registered with HSE before GM work of any class is undertaken. All projects of Class 2 and above must be notified to HSE before the work can commence. Click here to see a list of our current HSE notifications. All GM work must be risk assessed and approved by the University City Campus GM & Biological Safety Committee before work can commence.
• Click here for a step by step guide.

Radioactive Substances

• Any organisation wishing to use radioactive substances must apply to SEPA for a registration to keep or use radioactive substances and an authorisation to accumulate and dispose of radioactive waste before work can commence.All work with radioactive substances must be registered with Safety Services and risk assessed.All users of radioactive substances must be registered with Safety Services. Sealed radioactive sources must be registered with Safety Services. A separate SEPA registration must be obtained before a new high activity sealed source can be acquired.All orders for radioactive substances must be authorised by a Radiation Protection Supervisor.
• Current SEPA Certificates for The University City Campus:
  • Certificate of Registration May 2007
  • Certificate of Authorisation Sep 2007
  • Variation to Certificate of Authorisation July 2008
• Click here for further guidance for radiation workers.

Explosives

(updated 1/9/2016)

Under the The Explosives Regulations 2014, a certificate must be obtained from Police Scotland before we can acquire and keep a relevant explosive as defined within the regulations. Explosives listed in Schedule 2 of the regulations are not relevant explosives and do not require an explosives certificate. This list includes 1-Hydroxybenzotriazole hydrate (HOBt), a desensitised explosive and coupling reagent used in SLS chemistry labs, that required a certificate under the old, pre 2014 regulations.

Other useful links:

• Police Scotland Explosives Licensing
• HSE Explosives home page
• Explosives Regulations 2014, Security provisions
• Explosives Regulations 2014, Safety provisions