EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Issued by Authority of the Minister for the Environment and Water
Water Act 2007
Water (Indigenous Values and Uses) Repeal Direction 2024
Legislative Authority
The Water Act 2007 (the Act) makes provision for the management of the water resources of the Murray-Darling Basin, other matters of national interest in relation to water and water information, and related matters.
Under section 175 of the Act, the Minister may give directions, which must be consistent with the objects of the Act (which are set out in section 3 of the Act), to the Murray-Darling Basin Authority (the Authority) about the performance of the Authority’s functions.
Subsection 33(3) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 relevantly provides that where an Act confers a power to make an instrument of a legislative character the power shall be construed as including a power exercisable in the like manner and subject to the like conditions to repeal any such instrument.
Purpose
The purpose of the Water (Indigenous Values and Uses) Repeal Direction 2024 (the Repeal Direction) is to repeal the Water (Indigenous Values and Uses) Direction 2018 (the Direction).
Background
The Direction required the Authority to report publicly each year on how, when planning for environmental watering, the holders of held environmental water have considered Indigenous values and Indigenous uses and involved Indigenous people. The Direction also required that the Authority publish the report on its website within six months after the end of the water accounting period.
The Direction is now redundant due to reforms to the Act introduced by the Water Amendment (Restoring Our Rivers) Act 2023. The reforms incorporate the content of the Direction into the new reporting requirements under sections 85E and 85F of the Act. While at the time the Direction was necessary for reporting purposes, this is no longer the case.
Impact and Effect
The regulatory impact of the Repeal Direction is minor or machinery in nature and only relates to internal Government regulation. The Repeal Direction will prevent the duplication of reporting requirements on the Murray-Darling Basin Authority.
Consultation
The Murray-Darling Basin Authority and the Commonwealth Environment Water Holder were consulted prior to the Repeal Direction being made by the Minister.
The Office of Impact Analysis was consulted on the requirement for a Regulatory Impact Statement (RIS). It was determined that a RIS was not required as the repeal of the Direction does not remove reporting requirements but replaces the mode of reporting. The reporting requirement is now legislated in the Water Amendment (Restoring Our Rivers) Act 2023.
A Regulatory Impact Statement (RIS) was not required for the Direction – OIA24-07510 reference refers.
Details/ Operation
Details of the Repeal Direction are set out in Attachment A.
Subsection 175(4) of the Act provides that a direction made under subsection 175(1) is a legislative instrument, but neither section 42 (disallowance) nor Part 4 of Chapter 3 (sunsetting) of the Legislation Act 2003 applies to a direction. It is appropriate that the Repeal Direction is not subject to disallowance or sunsetting, because such directions are required for the proper performance of the Authority and are necessary for the Minister to exercise oversight over its functions.
Other
As the Repeal Direction is not subject to section 42 of the Legislation Act 2003, subsection 9(1) of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011 provides that a statement of compatibility is not required.
The Repeal Direction is a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislation Act 2003.
ATTACHMENT A
Details of the Water (Indigenous Values and Uses) Repeal Direction 2024
Section 1 – Name
This section provides that the name of the legislative instrument is the Water (Indigenous Values and Uses) Repeal Direction 2024.
Section 2 – Commencement
This section provides for the instrument to commence on the day after it is registered on the Federal Register of Legislation.
Section 3 – Authority
This section provides that the instrument is made under section 175 of the Act which allows the Minister to give directions, that must be consistent with the objects of the Act (which are set out in section 3 of the Act), to the Murray-Darling Basin Authority (the Authority) about the performance of the Authority’s functions.
In addition, subsection 33(3) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 relevantly provides that where an Act confers a power to make an instrument of a legislative character the power shall be construed as including a power exercisable in the like manner and subject to the like conditions to repeal any such instrument.
Section 4 – Schedules
This section enables Schedule 1 to this instrument, which contains the provision repealing the Water (Indigenous Values and Uses) Direction 2018.
Schedule 1 – Repeals
Item 1
This item repeals the entirety of the Water (Indigenous Values and Uses) Direction 2018.