Metric Conversion Act 1972

the units comprised in the International System of Units for the time being approved by the General Conference on Weights and Measures;

units decimally related to those units and for the time being so approved;

such other units as are declared from time to time pursuant to the Metric Conversion Act 1970 of the Commonwealth ³, as amended from time to time, or pursuant to any Act of the Commonwealth in substitution for that Act, to be within the metric system;

any proclamation or Order in Council;

any regulation, rule, local law, by‑law, notice, order or other instrument promulgated, made, given or published under or for the purposes of any Act.

Notwithstanding the provisions of any other Act or law, but subject to subsection (2), the Governor may by proclamation, in any case where he is of opinion that it is necessary or expedient so to do for giving proper effect to the purposes for which an Act was enacted, amend any reference in the Act to a physical quantity that is not expressed in terms of a unit or units in the metric system of measurement by substituting for that reference a reference to a physical quantity expressed in terms of a unit or units in the metric system of measurement.

A proclamation may be so made under subsection (1) as to —

take effect on such day or days as are specified therein, not being a day or days earlier than the day on which the proclamation is published in the Government Gazette; and

alter the physical quantity in the reference amended by the proclamation, but so that the physical quantity substituted by the proclamation —

is not less by more than 10% than; and

does not exceed by more than 10%,

The Minister administering an Act affected by a proclamation made under this section shall cause a copy of the proclamation to be laid on the Table of each House of Parliament within the first 6 sitting days of the House after the publication of the proclamation in the Government Gazette.

If either House of Parliament passes a resolution of which notice has been given within the first 14 sitting days of that House after the copy of a proclamation made under this section has been laid on the table of that House, that the proclamation be disallowed, the proclamation thereupon ceases to have effect, but the disallowance of the proclamation does not affect or invalidate anything done, or omitted to be done, in good faith before the passing of the resolution.

Notwithstanding the provisions of any other Act or law, the Minister administering an Act under which a statutory instrument has been promulgated, made, given or published may, with the approval of the Governor, by notice published in the Government Gazette amend any reference in the statutory instrument to a physical quantity that is not expressed in terms of a unit or units in the metric system of measurement by substituting for that reference a reference to a physical quantity expressed in terms of a unit or units in the metric system of measurement.

The provisions of section 5(2), (3) and (4) apply to a notice published under this section as though it were a proclamation made under section 5.

The Governor, on the recommendation of the Minister, may make regulations amending any subsidiary legislation made under any Act.

The Minister may make a recommendation under subsection (1) only if the Minister considers that each amendment proposed to be made by the regulations is solely for the purpose of amending a reference in the subsidiary legislation to a physical quantity that is not expressed in terms of a unit or units in the metric system of measurement by substituting for that reference a reference to a physical quantity expressed in terms of a unit or units in the metric system of measurement.

The quantity to be substituted need not be the exact metric equivalent of the quantity being replaced but must not be more than 10% greater or less than the quantity being replaced.