EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
STATUTORY RULES 1983 NO 204
ISSUED BY THE AUTHORITY OF THE MINISTER FOR DEFENCE
MILITARY FINANCIAL REGULATIONS (AMENDMENT)
Parts III, X and XV and section 116 of the Statute Law Revision Act 1981 make various changes to the titles and structures of the Reserve Forces in the Air Force, the Army and the Navy. These changes, which stem from recommendations of the 1974 Millar Committee Report on the Citizen Military Forces, come into operation from the date of proclamation (30 September 1983). Part X amends the Defence Act 1903 (“the Act”) to make the necessary changes in relation to Army Reserve Forces.
Under these amendments, the Citizen Military Forces are renamed as the Australian Army Reserve, the Active Citizen Military Forces as the Active Australian Army Reserve, and the Reserve Citizen Military Forces as the Inactive Australian Army Reserve. The Regular Army Reserve, which is a non-training element of the Permanent Forces, is abolished and its members transferred to the Inactive Australian Army Reserve. In the context of Reserve Forces, ‘Active’ denotes those elements where members have specific training obligations.
References to the Unattached List and the Reserve of Officers are removed from the Act. These relate to internal arrangements of the Active and Inactive Reserve which can be determined by the Chief of the General Staff under section 33 of the Act.
The Military Financial Regulations, made under the Act, prescribe various matters for the purposes of the Act, including provisions relating to the Reserve Forces.
This Statutory Rule makes amendments to the Military Financial Regulations consequential on those made by Part X of the Statute Law Revision Act 1981. The effect of these amendments is set out below.
Regulation 2 of the Statutory Rule amends regulation 5 to define ‘Army Reserve’ as the Australian Army Reserve.
Regulation 3 of the Statutory Rule substitutes in regulation 188 a new definition of ‘member’ for the purposes of those regulations relating to the Australian Army Reserve.
Regulation 4 of the Statutory Rule makes amendments to regulation 193 to substitute revised references to periods of military service and training periods.
Regulation 5 of the Statutory Rule makes the amendments set out in the Schedule to the Statutory Rule, which are title changes corresponding to those made by Part X of the Statute Law Revision Act 1981.
Commencement
The Statutory Rule comes into operation on 30 September 1983, the date from which Parts III, X and XV and section 116 of the Statute Law Revision Act 1981 are proclaimed to commence.