Defence Committee Regulations (Cth)

STATUTORY RULES.

1946. No. 39.

 

REGULATIONS UNDER THE DEFENCE ACT 1903–1945, THE NAVAL DEFENCE ACT 1910–1934, AND THE AIR FORCE ACT 1923–1941.*

I, THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL in and over the Commonwealth of Australia, acting with the advice of the Federal Executive Council, hereby make the following Regulations under the Defence Act 1903–1945, the Naval Defence Act 1910–1934 and the Air Force Act 1923–1941.

Dated this twenty-seventh day of February, 1946.

HENRY

Governor-General.

By His Royal Highness’s Command,

 

J. B. CHIFLEY

for Minister of State for Defence.

 

Defence Committee Regulations.

Citation.

1.These Regulations may be cited as the Defence Committee Regulations.

Object.

2.The object of these Regulations is to constitute a Defence Committee which shall be an advisory and consultative body to advise the Minister of State for Defence with respect to matters within the functions of the Committee under these Regulations.

Repeal.

3. The Defence Committee Regulations (being Statutory Rules 1929, No. 26, as amended by Statutory Rules 1938, No. 81) are repealed.

Definitions.

4.In these Regulations, unless the contrary intention appears—

“the Committee” means the Defence Committee constituted under these Regulations;

“the Minister” means the Minister of State for Defence.

The Defence Committee.

5.—(1.) There shall be a Defence Committee (to be known as “the Defence Committee”) which shall consist of—

(a) the Chief of the Naval Staff;

(b) the Chief of the General Staff;

(c) the Chief of the Air Staff; and

(d) an officer of the Department of Defence appointed by the Minister to be a member of the Committee.

* Notified in the Commonwealth Gazette on 28th February, 1946.

905.—Price 3d.

(2.) The Committee shall co-opt the Controller-General of Munitions Supply to act as a member of the Committee at any meeting at which any question affecting, or affected by, the activities of the Department of Munitions is to be discussed.

(3.) Whenever the Committee considers it necessary so to do, the Committee may, with the approval of the Minister, co-opt any person for the consideration of any matter and that person shall for the time being be deemed to be a member of the Committee.

(4.) The Committee may call into consultation representatives of any Department or authority concerned in a matter under discussion.

(5.) If any member of the Committee specified in sub-regulation (1.) of this regulation is unable to attend a meeting, he may be represented as a member—

(a) in the case of the Chief of Staff of any Service—by a senior officer nominated by that Chief of Staff; and

(b) in the case of an officer of the Department of Defence—by another officer of that Department appointed by the Minister.

Chairman.

6.The Minister may appoint a member of the Committee to be Chairman of the Committee.

Meetings.

7.—(1.) The Chairman shall convene meetings of the Committee.

(2.) The members specified in sub-regulation (1.) of regulation 5 of these Regulations or their representatives shall form a quorum:

Provided that not less than two of the members so specified shall be included in the quorum.

Secretaries.

8. The Secretary or Joint Secretaries to the Committee shall be an officer or officers of the Department of Defence and shall be appointed by the Minister.

Minutes.

9.The Secretary or the Joint Secretaries, as the case may be, shall keep minutes of all meetings of the Committee.

Functions of the Committee.

10. The functions of the Committee shall be to advise the Minister with respect to the following matters:—

(a) The defence policy as a whole;

(b) Matters of policy or principle and important questions having a joint Service or inter-departmental defence aspect; and

(c) Such other matters having a defence aspect as are referred to the Committee by or on behalf of the Minister.

Matters to be dealt with by the Committee.

11. In the performance of its functions, the Committee shall investigate, and advise the Minister with respect to—

(a) any matter referred to it by or on behalf of the Minister; and

(b) any matter within its functions with respect to which the Committee considers the Minister should be advised.

 

Standing committees and sub-committees.

12.—(1.) The Minister may, on the recommendation of the Committee, appoint such standing committees and sub-committees as he considers necessary for the investigation of any matter within the functions of the Committee.

(2.) The Committee may appoint such special sub-committees as it considers necessary for the investigation of any particular matter within the functions of the Committee.

(3.) The functions of standing committees shall be such as are approved by the Minister, on the recommendation of the Committee, and the functions of sub-committees shall be such as are determined by the Committee.

Decisions of the Minister.

13.The Secretary, Department of Defence, shall inform the Secretary or the Joint Secretaries, as the case may be, to the Committee and the Departments concerned of the decisions of the Minister on all matters with respect to which the Committee has advised the Minister.

 

By Authority: L. F. Johnston, Commonwealth Government Printer, Canberra.