Page 448 - Week 02 - Thursday, 11 February 2021
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I note Mr Cain’s observations about the comments from the scrutiny of bills committee. I hope from my remarks today that he and other members will see that issues of human rights consideration have been addressed in the development and consideration of this bill.
There is an ongoing need to update our legislation to make it clearer, more user friendly, and better aligned with community expectations and standards. Amendments to the Administration and Probate Act 1929 promote equality and non-discrimination. Intestate estates will now vest in persons who are unmarried and under the age of 18, thereby removing any discrimination based on age and relationship status. Further, the current legislation has an outdated reference to the common-law notion of the “Ordinary in England” which describes the Public Trustee and Guardian’s role in administering estates. The bill will modernise this anachronism to improve accessibility.
The bill also amends the Residential Tenancies Act 1997 to clarify the definition of “occupancy agreement”, as introduced by the Residential Tenancies Amendment Act 2020 (No 2). One of its amendments will ensure that agreements to occupy premises that are subject to the sales process are not an occupancy agreement. If such agreements are considered to be occupancy agreements, this could create unintended consequences for the sale process.
Further, minor amendments to the Retirement Villages Regulation 2013 and Security Industry Regulation 2003 will correct references to other legislation referred to in the regulations.
Another important aspect of the bill is that it makes amendments to harmonise legislative provisions within the same legislation and related legislation. The amendments to the Wills Act 1968 introduce a survivorship clause in cases of intestacy, to ensure consistency with similar provisions where a person has a will upon the date of death. These amendments will reduce delays resulting from the administration of an intestate estate.
The bill also amends the Lotteries Act 1964 to transfer the power to determine fees under the legislation from the ACT Gambling and Racing Commission to the administering minister. The amendment will achieve consistency across gaming legislation administered by the commission and ensure that the commission has a consistent approach to fees collected under the Gambling and Racing Control Act 1999. This means more consistent expectations for the community and a more efficient approach for government.
An additional government amendment to the Civil Law (Wrongs) Act 2002 that I propose to move will reduce any inefficiencies in making appointments to the ACT Professional Standards Council. Under the national scheme, the minister has no discretion in making appointments relating to interstate members to the territory’s council. By extension, the generally important role of the standing committee in providing input on proposed appointments does not apply and the amendments that I will move today remove that requirement. These are government amendments. I did
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