EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

Issued by authority of the

 Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations

Occupational Health and Safety (Commonwealth Employment) Act 1991

Subsection 70(1)

Approved Code of Practice for the Storage and Handling of Dangerous Goods

The purpose of the instrument to which this Explanatory Statement relates is to bring into operation the Approved Code of Practice for the Storage and Handling of Dangerous Goods (“the Code”), which was prepared by Comcare on behalf of the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Commission (“the Commission”).

The Code will take effect the day after it is registered.

Section 70 of the Occupational Health and Safety (Commonwealth Employment) Act 1991 (“the Act”) provides that the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations may approve codes of practice prepared by the Commission or any other body, and may amend or revoke any code of practice so approved under that section.

A code of practice approved by the Minister under the Act is a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.

An approved code of practice:

(a) provides practical guidance to persons with a duty of care under the Act and associated regulations;

(b) should be followed unless there is another means of achieving the same or better standard of health and safety; and

(c) is admissible as evidence in proceedings under the Act and associated regulations.

On 15 February 2006 the Occupational Health and Safety (Commonwealth Employment) (National Standards) Amendment Regulations 2006 (No. 2) received Royal Assent. These regulations amended the Occupational Health and Safety (Commonwealth Employment) (National Standards) Regulations 1994 (“the regulations”) to provide a framework for the regulation of storage and handling of dangerous goods in Commonwealth workplaces, and have effect from 1 May 2006.

The Code of Practice for the Storage and Handling of Dangerous Goods provides practical guidance to duty holders on ways to fulfil their obligations under the regulations, and is based on the National Code of Practice for the Storage and Handling of Workplace Dangerous Goods [NOHSC: 2017 (2001)] (“the National Code”). The implementation of this code is fundamental to ensure Commonwealth employers are abreast of best current practices related to the storage and handling of dangerous goods in the workplace, and to achieve national consistency in the uptake of national standards and codes.

A Regulation Impact Statement (RIS) was prepared by the National Occupational Health and Safety Commission (NOHSC, now known as the Australian Safety and Compensation Council) for the implementation of the National Code, on which this code is based. In accordance with the Council of Australian Governments’ Principles and Guidelines for National Standard Setting and Regulatory Action by Ministerial Councils and Standard-Setting Bodies it is not necessary to duplicate the RIS prepared by NOHSC.

Comcare consulted with employer and employee representatives through a working group in the preparation of the dangerous goods regulations and the Code.