Page 4994 - Week 13 - Thursday, 12 November 2009
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
The latest JACS bill contains amendments that are important, current and perfectly suited for inclusion in an omnibus bill of this nature. The criteria for including an amendment in a JACS bill are clear and reasonable. The amendment must not introduce a radical change in policy, and it must not be a controversial change that, by itself, warrants substantial debate. Each amendment in this bill meets those criteria.
The amendments to the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal (Transitional Provisions) Regulation 2009 and the amendments to the Firearms Regulation 2008 make transitional provisions permanent in the legislation. These amendments would only make the existing rules applicable under these acts permanent by transferring provisions from a transitional regulation into the body of each authorising act.
These transitional provisions were created with the understanding that they would be made part of the substantive legislation. No changes in the legal requirements of these acts have been introduced in the process. The JACS bill is a good way to enact these kinds of changes, because these provisions have already been made available to the public and the government has already signalled its intention to make them part of the statute book.
This bill will also enact basic procedural improvements. Examples of these kinds of improvements are in the amendments to the Agents Act 2003, the ACAT Act 2008, and the Crimes (Sentencing) Act 2005. Based on experience, agencies within the Department of Justice and Community Safety routinely identify areas where change would help make legislation easier and more efficient to administer.
The amendments to the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2008, for example, streamline and simplify the relationship between the tribunal and the Supreme Court. Also, the tribunal will have some guidance in the legislation for determining when to join new parties to a proceeding. The result will be that the tribunal’s procedures for dealing with a range of matters are clearer and more efficient.
The improvements that I have described are appropriate for this legislation because they do not change policies or fundamentally alter the functions of the government. Rather, they build on existing legislation and procedures.
This bill includes basic updates to the construction of the territory’s legislation. As legislation changes and new acts commence, the statute book naturally requires regular maintenance to ensure that all references between the acts are correct. Also, updates are necessary to minimise confusion where changes in the law have occurred.
The amendments in this bill to the Door-to-Door Trading Act 1991, the Residential Tenancies Act 1997 and the Supreme Court Act 1933 are of this nature. These amendments update references and remove provisions that could cause confusion. No change will be made to the core operations of these laws.
The JACS bill is a good vehicle for introducing these kinds of amendments. It combines the maintenance of several pieces of legislation into one package, and for these kinds of amendments it is both inefficient and unnecessary to have a separate bill for each.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video