The Biosafety Act was voted through, an important code for the post-epidemic era!

On October 17, the 22nd meeting of the Standing Committee of the 13th National People's Congress passed the biosafety law.andFromEffective April 15, 2021.This is my country's first law on biosafety. The outbreak of the new coronavirus this year has brought serious disasters to the world. Although the current epidemic in China has been effectively controlled, the global situation is still very serious. This epidemic has made the public understand Biosafety not only affects the safety of individual lives, but also relates to national public safety and human safety. At present, with the extreme changes in the climate, the deterioration of the natural environment and the increase in the mobility of human activities, the problem of global biosafety has become more prominent, major human infectious diseases, animal and plant epidemics continue to occur, and the situation of biosafety has become increasingly serious. The birth of the Law conforms to the requirements of the times.

1. biosafety content

Biosafety is an important part of national security. It means that the country effectively prevents and responds to threats from dangerous biological factors and related factors. Biotechnology can develop stably and healthily. People's lives and health and ecosystems are relatively in a state of no danger and no threat. The field has the ability to maintain national security and sustainable development. Biosafety-related activitiesMainly includes these contents:(I) the prevention and control of major emerging infectious diseases, animal and plant epidemics; (II) biotechnology research, development and application; (III) pathogenic microbiology laboratory biosafety management; (IV) human genetic resources and biosafety management; (V) prevention of alien species invasion and protection Biodiversity; (VI) response to microbial resistance; (VII) prevention of bioterrorist attacks and defense of biological weapons threats; (VIII) other biosafety-related activities.

The Role of 2. the Biosafety Law in Maintaining National Biosafety

The "Biosafety Law" is a basic law in the field of biosafety, and its promulgation and implementation will have a positive and far-reaching impact: First, it is conducive to protecting people's lives and health. The biosafety law takes the protection of people's lives and health as its legislative purpose. It is clear that the maintenance of biosafety should adhere to the principle of people-oriented. When preventing and responding to various biosafety risks, it always adheres to the people first and life first. Second, it is conducive to safeguarding national security. The biosafety law clarifies that biosafety is an important part of national security, incorporates biosafety into the national security system for planning and layout, and clarifies the biosafety management system and mechanism. Third, it is conducive to improving the national biosafety governance capacity. The law requires the government to support the development of biosafety, encourage the innovation of biological science and technology and the development of biological industry, strengthen personnel training and material reserve, coordinate the construction of biosafety infrastructure, strengthen the construction of national biosafety risk prevention and control and governance system, and enhance the national biosafety governance capacity.

3. the Biosafety Law has established a sound biosafety risk prevention and control system.

The law establishes a unified leadership, collaborative linkage, orderly and efficient biosafety risk prevention and control system, from the national ministries,local people's governments at all levels,Grassroots mass autonomous organizationsRelevant units and individualsMobilize social forces to participate in an orderly manner in accordance with the lawBiosafety risk prevention and controlWork.First, it is composed of the competent departments of health, agriculture and rural areas, science and technology, foreign affairs and relevant military organs of the State Council.The national biosafety work coordination mechanism analyzes, studies and judges the national biosafety situation, organizes, coordinates, and supervises the promotion of national biosafety-related work. Second, local people's governments at all levels are responsible for biosafety work within their respective administrative regions, and relevant departments of local people's governments at or above the county level are responsible for biosafety-related work according to the division of responsibilities. Third, grass-roots mass autonomous organizations should assist local people's governments and relevant departments in biosafety risk prevention and control, emergency response, publicity and education; fourth, relevant units and individuals should cooperate with the prevention and control of biosafety risks and emergency response.

SimultaneouslyThe state establishes a biosafety risk monitoring and early warning system and a risk investigation and assessment system, and regularly organizes biosafety risk investigation and assessment based on risk monitoring data, information and other information. The national biosafety work coordination mechanism organizes the establishment of a unified national biosafety information platform, and relevant departments shall submit biosafety data, materials and other information to the national biosafety information platform to realize information sharing.

4. Violations of the Biosafety Law and Corresponding Legal Liabilities

Violations of the Biosafety Law are mainly caused in biosafety-related activities, including the following: (1) The staff responsible for biosafety management abuse their power, neglect their duties, engage in malpractices for personal gain, or commit other violations in biosafety work. Those who commit illegal acts shall be punished in accordance with the law; (II) medical institutions, professional institutions or their staff to conceal, falsely report, delay, or fail to report, those who instruct others to conceal, falsely report, delay reporting, or hinder others from reporting infectious diseases, animal and plant diseases, or unexplained aggregated diseases shall be ordered to make corrections, warnings, suspension of practice, revocation of practice certificates, etc.; (III) to engage in biotechnology prohibited by the state Technological research, development and application activities or pathogenic microorganism experimental activities are not carried out in laboratories of the corresponding level, etc., shall be given warnings, fines, etc; (IV) the purchase or introduction of important equipment included in the control list, the failure to register special biological factors, and the purchase or possession of important equipment or special biological factors included in the control list by individuals shall be subject to confiscation of illegal income, warnings, fines and other penalties; (V) overseas organizations, individuals and their established or actually controlled institutions to collect and store China's human genetic resources in China, or provide China's human genetic resources abroad, penalties such as confiscation of illegal income and fines shall be imposed; (VI) acts of introducing alien species without approval shall be imposed such as confiscation of the introduced alien species and fines. At the same time, the Act providesIf a crime is constituted, criminal responsibility shall be investigated according to law; if personal, property or other damage is caused, civil liability shall be borne according to law.

Recent international and domestic biosafety incidents,For exampleAfrican swine fever, African locust plague, American flu, new coronavirus, etc,Has brought serious disaster to human society,The Biosafety ActIntegrating Biosafety into National Security Systems,Upgrading Biosecurity to National Grand StrategyIt is a major measure to safeguard national security.. After the outbreak, the domestic biosafety sector will usher in a comprehensive policy push.The law will become an important law to prevent and respond to biosafety risks, protect people's lives and health, protect biological resources and the ecological environment, and maintain national security.