Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2017

See www.legislation.vic.gov.au for Victorian Bills, Acts and current Versions of legislation and up-to-date legislative information.

Minister's second reading speech—

Legislative Assembly: 21 September 2017

Legislative Council: 31 October 2017

The long title for the Bill for this Act was "A Bill for an Act to provide for and regulate access to voluntary assisted dying, to establish the Voluntary Assisted Dying Review Board, to make consequential amendments to the Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 1996, the Coroners Act 2008, the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981, the Health Records Act 2001, the Medical Treatment Planning and Decisions Act 2016, the Pharmacy Regulation Act 2010 and other Acts and for other purposes."

The Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2017 was assented to on 5 December 2017 and came into operation as follows:

Sections 1–3, 5 and 92–102 on 1 July 2018: Special Gazette (No. 190) 24 April 2018 page 1; sections 4, 6–91, 103–143 on 19 June 2019: section 2(2).

INTERPRETATION OF LEGISLATION ACT 1984 (ILA)

Style changes

Section 54A of the ILA authorises the making of the style changes set out in Schedule 1 to that Act.

References to ILA s. 39B

Sidenotes which cite ILA s. 39B refer to section 39B of the ILA which provides that where an undivided section or clause of a Schedule is amended by the insertion of one or more subsections or subclauses, the original section or clause becomes subsection or subclause (1) and is amended by the insertion of the expression "(1)" at the beginning of the original section or clause.

Interpretation

As from 1 January 2001, amendments to section 36 of the ILA have the following effects:

• Headings

All headings included in an Act which is passed on or after 1 January 2001 form part of that Act. Any heading inserted in an Act which was passed before 1 January 2001, by an Act passed on or after 1 January 2001, forms part of that Act. This includes headings to Parts, Divisions or Subdivisions in a Schedule; sections; clauses; items; tables; columns; examples; diagrams; notes or forms. See section 36(1A)(2A).

• Examples, diagrams or notes

All examples, diagrams or notes included in an Act which is passed on or after 1 January 2001 form part of that Act. Any examples, diagrams or notes inserted in an Act which was passed before 1 January 2001, by an Act passed on or after 1 January 2001, form part of that Act. See section 36(3A).

• Punctuation

All punctuation included in an Act which is passed on or after 1 January 2001 forms part of that Act. Any punctuation inserted in an Act which was passed before 1 January 2001, by an Act passed on or after 1 January 2001, forms part of that Act. See section 36(3B).

• Provision numbers

All provision numbers included in an Act form part of that Act, whether inserted in the Act before, on or after 1 January 2001. Provision numbers include section numbers, subsection numbers, paragraphs and subparagraphs. See section 36(3C).

• Location of "legislative items"

A "legislative item" is a penalty, an example or a note. As from 13 October 2004, a legislative item relating to a provision of an Act is taken to be at the foot of that provision even if it is preceded or followed by another legislative item that relates to that provision. For example, if a penalty at the foot of a provision is followed by a note, both of these legislative items will be regarded as being at the foot of that provision. See section 36B.

• Other material

Any explanatory memorandum, table of provisions, endnotes, index and other material printed after the Endnotes does not form part of an Act.

See section 36(3)(3D)(3E).