Audit Regulations (Amendment) 1994 No. 177
EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Statutory Rules 1994 No. 177
Issued by the Authority of the Minister for Finance
Audit Act 1901
Audit Regulations (Amendment)
Subsection 7 1 (1) of the Audit Act 1901 (the Act) provides that the Governor-General may make regulations for the purposes of the Act. The regulations amend the Audit Regulations (the Principal Regulations) made pursuant to the Act.
Section 70BA of the Act provides that the Principal Regulations may declare an authority, a body or a company in which the Commonwealth has a controlling interest, to be subject to the section. The effect of such a declaration is that, where the Auditor-General is required by the Act or other legislation to submit a report on an authority, body or company, the AuditorGeneral may authorise an officer to sign that report on the Auditor-General's behalf and when the report is submitted, it shall be taken to have been submitted by the Auditor-General. Currently the Principal Regulations declare CSL Limited and one of its subsidiaries, Coselco Insurance Pty Limited, to be companies to which section 70BA applies.
Once CSL Limited is privatised, and no longer falls within the ambit of any part of the Audit Act, the reference to CSL Limited and Coselco Insurance Pty Limited in the Audit Regulations will no longer have effect and accordingly should be omitted following the sale of CSL Limited.
To this end, the regulations amend the Principal Regulations to remove the references to "CSL Limited" and "Coselco Insurance Pty Limited" from Schedule 2 of the Audit Regulations.
The commencement of the regulations is tied to the declaration of the sale day under section 4 of the CSL Sale Act 1993. The "sale day" is that day which the Minister for Finance, pursuant to section 4 of the CSL Sale Act 1993, declares to be, "the first day ... on which a majority of the voting shares in CSL are acquired by a person, or persons, other than the Commonwealth or a nominee of the Commonwealth." Retrospective operation of the regulations is allowed by section 48 of the CSL Sale Act 1993 and section 48 of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901.
Overview
The Audit Regulations (Amendment) 1994 No. 177, issued under the authority of the Minister for Finance, amend the Audit Regulations made pursuant to the Audit Act 1901. This amendment was enacted to address the need to update the regulations following the privatisation of CSL Limited, a company previously subject to the Act. The regulations remove references to CSL Limited and one of its subsidiaries, Coselco Insurance Pty Limited, from the list of companies to which section 70BA of the Audit Act applies. This change ensures that the regulations remain relevant and effective post-privatisation, when CSL Limited will no longer be under Commonwealth control. The commencement of these regulations is contingent upon the declaration of the sale day under section 4 of the CSL Sale Act 1993, with retrospective operation permitted by sections 48 of both the CSL Sale Act 1993 and the Acts Interpretation Act 1901.
Scope and Application
The Audit Regulations (Amendment) 1994 No. 177 pertains to the Audit Act 1901, which authorises the Governor-General to make regulations for the purposes of the Act. These regulations specifically amend the Audit Regulations, made under the authority of the Audit Act, to adjust the scope of entities subject to certain auditing requirements. The Audit Act applies to authorities, bodies, or companies in which the Commonwealth has a controlling interest, and it allows the Auditor-General to delegate the signing of audit reports to authorised officers for these entities. The regulations are designed to reflect changes in the ownership structure of entities like CSL Limited and its subsidiary, Coselco Insurance Pty Limited, by removing references to these entities from the regulations once they are privatised. This amendment ensures that the regulations remain relevant and effective following the sale of CSL Limited, which is defined by a declaration under the CSL Sale Act 1993. The regulations will come into effect on the "sale day," as determined by the Minister for Finance under the CSL Sale Act 1993, and can operate retrospectively in accordance with the Acts Interpretation Act 1901.
Key Provisions
The Audit Regulations (Amendment) 1994 No. 177 modify the existing Audit Regulations to adjust the scope of companies subject to the Auditor-General's reporting requirements. Specifically, section 70BA of the Audit Act 1901 permits the Auditor-General to authorise an officer to sign a report on behalf of the Auditor-General. The regulations amend the Principal Regulations by removing references to CSL Limited and Coselco Insurance Pty Limited from Schedule 2. These companies are currently subject to the reporting requirements, but once CSL Limited is privatised, it will no longer be under Commonwealth control, and thus, these references will become obsolete (subsection 7(1) and section 70BA).
The obligations imposed by these regulations are straightforward. Once the sale of CSL Limited is declared under the CSL Sale Act 1993, the regulations will automatically remove CSL Limited and Coselco Insurance Pty Limited from the list of companies subject to section 70BA. This amendment ensures that the regulations no longer apply to companies that have left Commonwealth control. The regulations are designed to keep the legal framework current and relevant to the changing ownership status of companies.
There are no specific offences or penalties outlined in the Audit Regulations (Amendment) 1994 No. 177. The regulations primarily serve to clarify and streamline the application of the Audit Act 1901 in light of corporate changes, particularly the privatisation of CSL Limited. However, non-compliance with the Audit Act or the regulations could result in broader legal consequences, including the potential for the Auditor-General to report on the entity, which could lead to further scrutiny or corrective actions. The amendments ensure that the legal requirements remain accurate and aligned with the current corporate landscape.