This Act may be cited as the Building Emergency Regulations Act 1953.

This Act shall come into force on the first day of January, nineteen hundred and fifty-four.

In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, the expression “building emergency regulations” means regulations made under this Act; and includes the regulations referred to in section four of this Act.

The Governor-General may from time to time, by Order in Council, make such regulations (in this Act referred to as building emergency regulations) as appear to him to be necessary or expedient for maintaining, controlling, and regulating supplies and services in relation to building materials and constructional work.

Building emergency regulations may empower or provide for empowering such authorities, persons, or classes of persons as may be specified in the regulations to make orders, rules, or by-laws for any of the purposes for which building emergency regulations are authorized by this Act to be made, and may contain such incidental and supplementary provisions as appear to the Governor-General in Council to be necessary or expedient for the purposes of the regulations.

Any building emergency regulations, and any order, rule, or by-law duly made in pursuance of building emergency regulations, shall have effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent therewith contained in any enactment other than this Act or in any instrument having effect by virtue of any enactment other than this Act.

All regulations made under this Act shall be laid before Parliament within twenty-eight days after the date of the making thereof if Parliament is then in session, and, if not, shall be laid before Parliament within twenty-eight days after the date of the commencement of the next ensuing session.

The regulations specified in the Schedule to this Act (being supply regulations within the meaning of the Supply Regulations Act 1947) shall continue in force as if they had been made under this Act.

Except as otherwise expressly provided in building emergency regulations, no action, claim, or demand whatsoever shall lie or be made or allowed by or in favour of any person against the Crown, or any Minister of the Crown, or any Department, or any officer or person acting in the execution or intended execution of any building emergency regulations, for or in respect of any damage, loss, or injury sustained or alleged to have been sustained by reason of anything done or purporting to be done under the authority of any building emergency regulations.

This Act shall continue in force until the end of December, nineteen hundred and fifty-four, and shall then expire.

The expiry of this Act shall not affect the operation thereof in respect of things previously done or omitted to be done.

The Supply Regulations Act 1947 and the Supply Regulations Amendment Act 1952 are hereby repealed.

All supply regulations within the meaning of the Supply Regulations Act 1947 in force immediately before the commencement of this Act other than the regulations referred to in section four of this Act are hereby revoked.