This Act may be cited as the Statutes Drafting and Compilation Act 1920.

(1) There shall be an office of Parliament to be called the Parliamentary Counsel Office.

(2) The Parliamentary Counsel Office shall be under the control of the Attorney-General. If during any period there shall be no Minister of the Crown who is Attorney-General, the office shall during such period be under the control of the Prime Minister.

There shall be 2 Departments of the Parliamentary Counsel Office—namely, the Bill Drafting Department and the Compilation Department.

(1) The duties of the officers of the Bill Drafting Department shall be—

• (a) to draft such Government Bills as the Ministers of the Crown may direct to be prepared for the consideration of Parliament, and such amendments of such drafts as may from time to time be required by Ministers of the Crown during the passage of such Bills in Parliament:

• (b) to supervise the printing of such Bills and amendments:

• (c) to examine all local Bills and to report to the Prime Minister or the Attorney-General whether and to what extent the provisions of any local Bill affect the rights of the Crown or of the public, or repeal, extend, or amend the provisions of any public statute, and generally as to the form and effect of each local Bill:

• (d) if and when so directed by the Prime Minister or the Attorney-General, to report as to the form and effect of any Bills other than local Bills introduced by private members into the House of Representatives:

• (e) such other duties relating to the drafting and preparation of statutes and regulations to be made under the authority of statutes as the Prime Minister or the Attorney-General may from time to time assign to be performed by the Bill Drafting Department.

(2) In addition to the duties hereinbefore referred to the Chief Parliamentary Counsel shall, if and when so directed by the Prime Minister or the Attorney-General upon the request of a local authority, revise any local Bill proposed to be promoted by such local authority.

(3) In respect of such revision by the Chief Parliamentary Counsel of any Local Bill there shall be payable by the local authority such fees as may be prescribed by regulations under this Act.

(4) All fees under this section shall be paid into the Public Account and form part of the Consolidated Account.

The duties of the officers of the Compilation Department shall be—

• (a) as and when directed by the Prime Minister or the Attorney-General, to compile, with their amendments, statutes, amendments whereof have been enacted, and to supervise the printing of such compilations:

• (b) to report to the Prime Minister or the Attorney-General upon verbal or technical alterations of language which may be adopted for the purpose and in the course of any compilation:

• (c) to consider the language and effect of the statutes, compilation whereof is directed, and to state for the consideration of the Prime Minister or the Attorney-General suggestions or proposals for the alteration of the law enacted by such statutes, or for the extension or limitation of the effect of such statutes, or for amendment of the wording of any such statute:

• (d) such other duties relating to the compilation of statutes and the amendment or extension or limitation of the effect of statutes enacted by Parliament as the Prime Minister or the Attorney-General may from time to time assign to be performed by the Compilation Department.

(1) The chief officer of the Bill Drafting Department shall be called the Chief Parliamentary Counsel. There shall be appointed 1 or more Parliamentary Counsel. The Chief Parliamentary Counsel and the Parliamentary Counsel shall be principal officers of the Parliamentary Counsel Office.

(2) The chief officer of the Compilation Department shall be called the Compiler of Statutes, and shall be a principal officer of the Parliamentary Counsel Office.

(3) The principal officers of the Parliamentary Counsel Office shall be appointed by the Governor-General upon the advice of the Prime Minister, and shall hold office during the pleasure of the Governor-General.

(4) The staff of the Parliamentary Counsel Office other than the principal officers shall be appointed by the Chief Parliamentary Counsel; but the number of those staff shall not exceed a number determined from time to time by the Attorney-General.

(5) [Repealed]

(1) The Chief Parliamentary Counsel shall be paid—

• (a) such remuneration as is determined from time to time by the Remuneration Authority; and

• (b) such additional allowances, being travelling allowances or other incidental or minor allowances, as may be determined from time to time by the Minister of Finance.

(2) The other principal officers of the Parliamentary Counsel Office must be paid remuneration (including travelling allowances and other incidental allowances) that the Chief Parliamentary Counsel determines.

(3) The staff of the Parliamentary Counsel Office (other than the principal officers) must be employed on terms and conditions of employment and be paid salaries and allowances that the Chief Parliamentary Counsel determines.

(3A) Before entering into a collective agreement under the Employment Relations Act 2000, the Chief Parliamentary Counsel must consult with the State Services Commissioner about the conditions of employment to be included in the collective agreement.

(4) Subject to The Remuneration Authority Act 1977, any determination made under this section may be made so as to come into force on a date to be specified for that purpose in the determination, being the date of the making of the determination, or any other date, whether before or after the date of the making of the determination.

(5) Every determination made under this section in respect of which no date is specified as aforesaid shall come into force on the date of the making of the determination.

The Governor-General may from time to time, by Order in Council, make regulations for the purpose of carrying into effect the provisions of this Act.

(1) Notwithstanding anything in section 4(1), the Governor-General may from time to time by Order in Council, made on the recommendation of the Attorney-General, authorise the Inland Revenue Department—

• (a) to draft (subject to such exceptions as may be specified in the order) such Government Bills (being Bills intended to become Acts administered by that Department) as the Minister of the Crown who is responsible for that Department may direct to be prepared for the consideration of Parliament, and such amendments of such drafts as may from time to time be required by that Minister during the passage of such Bills in Parliament; and

• (b) to supervise the printing of the Bills and amendments referred to in paragraph (a).

(2) Any Order in Council made under subsection (1) may be at any time varied or revoked by a subsequent Order in Council.

(3) Every Order in Council made under subsection (1) or subsection (2) shall be deemed to be a regulation for the purposes of the Acts and Regulations Publication Act 1989 and the Regulations (Disallowance) Act 1989.

(1) The Chief Parliamentary Counsel—

• (a) may from time to time, either generally or particularly, delegate to any Parliamentary Counsel or other staff member of the Parliamentary Counsel Office any of the functions, responsibilities, duties, or powers of the Chief Parliamentary Counsel, including functions or powers delegated to the Chief Parliamentary Counsel under any Act:

• (b) must ensure that an appropriate delegation is at all times in place under this section to enable a person to act in place of the Chief Parliamentary Counsel during any absence or incapacity of the Chief Parliamentary Counsel or during any vacancy in the office of Chief Parliamentary Counsel.

(2) The person to whom any functions, responsibilities, duties, or powers are delegated under this section may perform or exercise those functions, responsibilities, duties, or powers in the same manner and with the same effect as if they had been conferred on that person directly by this Act and not by delegation.

(3) Subsection (2) is subject to any general or special directions given or conditions imposed by the Chief Parliamentary Counsel.

(4) A person purporting to act under any delegation under this section is, in the absence of proof to the contrary, presumed to be acting in accordance with the terms of the delegation.

(5) A delegation under this section may be made to—

• (a) a specified person or persons of a specified class; or

• (b) the holder or holders for the time being of a specified position, or of a specified class of positions.

(6) No delegation under this section affects or prevents the performance or exercise of any function, responsibility, duty, or power by the Chief Parliamentary Counsel, or affects the responsibility of the Chief Parliamentary Counsel for the actions of any person acting under the delegation.

(1) A person who holds a delegation referred to in section 8B(1)(b) may act in place of the Chief Parliamentary Counsel while the Chief Parliamentary Counsel is absent or incapacitated or during any vacancy in the office of Chief Parliamentary Counsel.

(2) No acts done by the person acting in place of the Chief Parliamentary Counsel under subsection (1) may, in any proceedings, be questioned on the ground that the occasion for the authorisation had not arisen or had ceased.

(1) A delegation under section 8B is revocable at any time in writing.

(2) A delegation, until it is revoked, continues to have effect according to its terms even if the Chief Parliamentary Counsel by whom it was made has ceased to hold office.

(3) A delegation made by a Chief Parliamentary Counsel who has ceased to hold office continues to have effect as if made by the successor in office of that Chief Parliamentary Counsel.

The enactments mentioned in the Schedule are hereby repealed.