Work Health and Safety Act 2011

The Minister may approve a code of practice for the purposes of this Act.

The power to approve a code of practice includes the power to amend or repeal the approval of the code of practice. The power to amend or repeal the approval is exercisable in the same way, and subject to the same conditions, as the power to make it (see Legislation Act, s 46).

The Minister may only approve a code of practice (other than a code of practice in relation to the management, control or removal of asbestos or asbestos containing material) if the code of practice was developed by a process that involved consultation between—

the Governments of the Commonwealth and each State and Territory; and

unions; and

employer organisations.

An approved code of practice may apply, adopt or incorporate an instrument, as in force from time to time.

The text of an applied, adopted or incorporated instrument, whether applied as in force from time to time or as at a particular time, is taken to be a notifiable instrument if the operation of the Legislation Act, s 47 (5) or (6) is not disapplied (see s 47 (7)).

A notifiable instrument must be notified under the Legislation Act.

A reference to an instrument includes a reference to a provision of an instrument (see Legislation Act, s 14 (2)).

An approval of a code of practice is a notifiable instrument.

A notifiable instrument must be notified under the Legislation Act.

An amendment or repeal of an approval of a code of practice is also a notifiable instrument (see Legislation Act, s 46 (2)).

The Minister must, as soon as practicable after approving a code of practice, give additional public notice of the approval.

Public notice means notice on an ACT government website or in a daily newspaper circulating in the ACT (see Legislation Act, dict, pt 1). The requirement in s (5) is in addition to the requirement for notification on the legislation register as a notifiable instrument.

The regulator must ensure that a copy of—

each code of practice that is currently approved; and

each document applied, adopted or incorporated (to any extent) by an approved code of practice;