Arsenic Act 1851

Arsenic Act 1851[1]
Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long titleAn Act to regulate the Sale of Arsenic.
Citation14 & 15 Vict. c. 13
Dates
Royal assent5 June 1851
Other legislation
Repealed byPharmacy and Poisons Act 1933
Status: Repealed
Text of statute as originally enacted

The Arsenic Act 1851[1] or the Sale of Arsenic Regulation Act 1851 (14 & 15 Vict. c. 13) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, passed in 1851, during the reign of Queen Victoria. Arsenic was at the time widely used as a pigment and in agricultural products such as sheep dressings; the Act was introduced to address increasing public concern over accidental and deliberate arsenic poisonings.[2]

The definition of arsenic for the purposes of the Act included "Arsenious Acid and the Arsenites, Arsenic Acid and the Arseniates, and all other colourless poisonous Preparations of Arsenic". The Act required those selling such products to maintain a written and signed record of those to whom they had sold arsenic, including the quantity and its stated purpose. It also required that unless the arsenic was to be used for a purpose that would make such treatment unsuitable, for example in medical or agricultural applications, it had to be coloured with either soot or indigo.[3] The maximum penalty for breaching the terms of the Act, or providing false information, was £20,[4] equivalent to about £13,000 as of 2014.[a]

The Act did not restrict who was allowed to sell arsenic, as until the Pharmacy Act 1868 there was no legal definition of a pharmacist.[5] Section 17 of the Pharmacy Act 1868 provided that "nothing in this Act contained shall repeal or affect any of the provisions" of the Arsenic Act 1851.[6] The Arsenic Act 1851 was repealed by the Pharmacy and Poisons Act 1933.[7] The Arsenic Act 1851 is repealed for the Republic of Ireland by the Poisons Act, 1961.[8]

  1. ^ a b The citation of this Act by this short title was authorised by the Short Titles Act 1896, section 1 and the first schedule.  Due to the repeal of those provisions it is now authorised by section 19(2) of the Interpretation Act 1978.
  2. ^ Crellin & Worthen (2004), p. 116
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference NationalArchives was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Foxcroft (2006), p. 103
  5. ^ Bell (2003), p. 23
  6. ^ The Pharmacy Act 1868, section 17
  7. ^ Glyn-Jones (1933), p. 106
  8. ^ The Poisons Act, 1961, section 21 and Schedule


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