Annual Reports ACT 2004

[Consolidated as at 28 October 2013

on the authority of the Administrator

and in accordance with

the Enactments Reprinting Act 1980]

Table of Provisions

PART 1   —   PRELIMINARY

Section

 1. Short title

 2. Commencement

 3. Dictionary

 4. Notes

PART 2   —   ANNUAL REPORTS

 5. Annual report of Chief Executive Officer

 6. Annual report of public sector agency

 7. Consultation about annual report direction

 8. Annual report direction

PART 3    —   RESPONSIBLE MINISTERS

 9. Chief Executive Officer’s annual report

 10. Responsible Minister for Public Account and public sector agency annual reports

PART 4    —   PRESENTATION OF ANNUAL REPORTS

 11. Responsible Minister to present annual report

 12. Extension of time for presenting annual reports

 13. Presentation of annual report of Auditor

PART 5    —   MISCELLANEOUS

 14. Declaration of public authority

 15. Combined reports

 16. Relationship to other laws

 17. Application of Act

 18. Dictionary

Annual Reports Act 2004

An Act to make provision with respect to the preparation and presentation of annual reports by the Administration and public sector agencies and for related purposes.

BE IT ENACTED by the Legislative Assembly of Norfolk Island as follows —

Part 1  —   Preliminary

Short title

 1. This Act may be cited as the Annual Reports Act 2004.

Commencement

 2. This Act commences on the day on which notification of its assent is published in the Gazette.

Dictionary

 3. The dictionary at the end of this Act is part of this Act.

Note: The dictionary at the end of this Act defines terms used in this Act, and includes references (signpost definitions) to other terms defined elsewhere in this Act.

 For example, the signpost definition ‘Chief Executive Officer’s annual report—see section 5.’ means that the term ‘Chief Executive Officer’s annual report’ is defined in that section.

Note: A definition in the dictionary (including a signpost definition) applies to the entire Act unless the definition, or another provision of the Act, provides otherwise or the contrary intention otherwise appears .

Notes

4.                   A note included in this Act is explanatory and is not part of this Act.

Part 2   —   Annual reports

Annual report of Chief Executive Officer

 5. (1) The Chief Executive Officer must, for each financial year, prepare a report (a Chief Executive Officer’s annual report) about the operations of the public service during the year.

  (2) The report must comply with any applicable annual report direction.

Note: The Chief Executive Officer is appointed under section 21 of the Public Sector Management Act 2000.

Note : The public service is defined in section 35 of the Public Sector Management Act 2000.

Annual report of public sector agency

 6. (1) A public sector agency must, for each financial year, prepare a report (a public sector agency annual report) about the operations of the agency during the year.

  (2) The report must comply with any applicable annual report direction.

  (3) In this section  —

financial year includes —

(a) for a public sector agency for which a direction under paragraph 8(3)(d) (annual report direction) is in effect — the period stated in the direction; and

(b) for a public sector agency that begins operation during a financial year and for which no direction under paragraph 9(3)(d) is in effect — the part of the financial year during which the public authority operates.

Note:  Public sector agency is defined in the dictionary.

Consultation about annual report direction

 7. (1) Before issuing an annual report direction under section 8, the Minister must, if there is one, consult the standing committee of the Legislative Assembly responsible for the scrutiny of public accounts.

  (2) The committee may make a recommendation to the Minister about the proposed direction.

  (3) The Minister must not issue the direction until the Minister has received a recommendation or 30 days have passed since the consultation took place, whichever happens first.

  (4) If there is no standing committee as described in subsection (1) the Minister may proceed to issue the direction under section 8 without consultation.

Annual report direction

 8. (1) The Minister must, in writing, issue a direction (an annual report direction) about annual reports.

  (2) In issuing an annual report direction, the Minister must have regard to any recommendation received under section 7.

  (3) An annual report direction may —

(a) provide general guidelines that may include requirement that an annual report be in a stated form or include stated information; or

(b) for a Chief Executive Officer’s annual report—require the report to include (as an attachment or otherwise) a public sector agency annual report; or

(c) for a public sector agency annual report—require the report to be given to the Chief Executive Officer for inclusion (as an attachment or otherwise) in the Chief Executive Officer’s annual report; or

(d) for a public sector agency annual report—require the authority to prepare the report for a stated period other than a financial year; or

(e) require an annual report to be given by a stated person or stated public sector agency to the responsible Minister for the report by a stated day; or

(f) require a Chief Executive Officer’s annual report to include stated matters if a public sector agency fails to comply with section 6 (Annual report of public authority) or an annual report direction.

  (4) An annual report direction is a disallowable instrument.

Note: A disallowable instrument must be notified under the Interpretation Act 1979.

  (5) An annual report direction must be presented to the Legislative Assembly at the first meeting of the Assembly after the day it is published in the Gazette or if a meeting of the Assembly begins within 7 days after such publication – at the second meeting of the Assembly after publication.

Part 3   —   Responsible Ministers

Chief Executive Officer’s annual report

 9. The Minister responsible for a Chief Executive Officer’s annual report of the public service is the Minister allocated responsibility for the public service.

Responsible Minister for Public Account and public sector agency annual reports

 10. (1) The responsible Minister responsible for the preparation of the annual accounts of the Administration under the Public Moneys Act 1979 is the Minister responsible for the administration of that Act.

  (2) The responsible Minister for a public sector agency annual report is —

(a) for the Public Service Board or a public sector agency established or appointed under an enactment — the Minister administering the enactment in the relevant respect; or

(b) for any other public sector agency — the Minister who is the responsible Minister for the public sector agency.

Part 4   —   Presentation of annual reports

Responsible Minister to present annual report

 11. (1) Subject to subsection (3), the responsible Minister for an annual report must present the report to the Legislative Assembly within 3 months after the end of the financial year (the 3 month period).

  (2) If an annual report has not been presented to the Legislative Assembly before the last 7 days of the 3 month period for the report, and there are no sitting days of the Legislative Assembly during the 7 days —

(a) the responsible Minister must give the report, and a copy for each member of the Legislative Assembly, to the Speaker before the end of the 3 month period; and

(b) the Speaker must arrange for a copy of the report to be given to each member of the Legislative Assembly on the day the responsible Minister gives it to the Speaker; and

(c) the responsible Minister must present the report to the Legislative Assembly —

(i) on the next sitting day after the end of the 3 month period; or

(ii) if the next sitting day is the first meeting of the Legislative Assembly after a general election of members of the Assembly — on the second sitting day after the election.

  (3) A statement under the Public Moneys Act 1979 must be presented within 30 days of the presentation of the annual report of the Auditor under section 13.

  (4) In this section  —

Speaker includes —

(a) if the Speaker is unavailable — the Deputy Speaker; and

(b) if both the Speaker and Deputy Speaker are unavailable — the Clerk to the Legislative Assembly.

unavailable — the Speaker or Deputy Speaker is unavailable if —

(a) he or she is absent from duty; or

(b) there is a vacancy in the office of Speaker or Deputy Speaker.

Extension of time for presenting annual reports

 12. (1) The responsible Minister for an annual report may request the Legislative Assembly for an extension of the time when the Minister must present the report to the Legislative Assembly or, if subsection 12(4) applies, when the responsible Minister must give the report to the Speaker.

  (2) An application for an extension must be made at least 14 days before the end of the 3 month period for the report.

  (3) The request must be accompanied by a written statement of the reasons for the failure to meet the time.

  (4) The Legislative Assembly may extend the time by —

(a) setting a period within which the report must be presented to the Legislative Assembly; or

(b) fixing a day when the report must be presented to the Legislative Assembly.

  (5) If the extension has been granted, the responsible Minister must present the report to the Legislative Assembly in accordance with the extension.

  (6) However, if there are no sitting days of the Legislative Assembly during the period mentioned in paragraph (4)(a), paragraphs 12(4)(a) to (c) applies as if a reference to the 3 month period were a reference to the period mentioned in paragraph (4)(a).

  (7) The statement mentioned in subsection (3) must be presented to the Legislative Assembly during the 3 month period for the report.

  (8) In this section  —

3 month period — see subsection 11(1).

Presentation of annual report of Auditor

 13. (1) In accordance with section 51C of the Norfolk Island Act 1979 the Speaker must present the annual report of the Auditor to the Legislative Assembly within 65 days after the day on which the Speaker receives the report (the 65 day period).

  (2) However, if an annual report of the Auditor has not been presented to the Legislative Assembly before the last 7 days of the 65 day period for presenting the report, and there are no sitting days of the Legislative Assembly during the 7 days —

(a) the Speaker must arrange for a copy of the report to be given to each member of the Legislative Assembly on the day the Auditor gives it to the Speaker; and

(b) the Speaker must present the report to the Legislative Assembly —

(i) on the next sitting day after the end of the 65 day period; or

(ii) if the next sitting day is the first meeting of the Legislative Assembly after a general election of members of the Assembly — on the second sitting day after the election.

  (3) At the request of the Auditor, the Speaker may present a report of the Auditor to the Legislative Assembly after the time required under subsection (1) or, if applicable, subsection (2).

  (4) If subsection (3) applies, the Speaker must present the report to the Legislative Assembly as soon as possible.

Part 5  —  Miscellaneous

Declaration of public authority

 14. (1) The Minister may, in writing, declare that a statutory office-holder is a public sector agency for the dictionary, definition of public sector agency.

  (2) The Minister may, in writing, declare that an authority, tribunal, commission, council, board, institute, committee, organisation or other entity established under an Act is a public authority for the dictionary definition of public sector agency.

  (3) A declaration under this section is a disallowable instrument.

Note: A disallowable instrument must be notified under the Interpretation Act 1979.

Combined reports

 15. (1) This section applies if —

(a) a person is required to prepare more than 1 report under this Act in relation to the same financial year; and

(b) the person considers that the reports can appropriately be combined into a single report that complies with this Act.

Note: A reference to an Act includes a reference to the statutory instruments made or in force under the Act (see Interpretation  Act 1979, section 7).

 (2) The preparation of a combined report, and presentation of the report to the Legislative Assembly, is taken to comply with the requirements of this Act about the preparation and presentation of the reports that have been combined.

Relationship to other laws

 16. (1) This Act is in addition to the requirements of any other enactment of Norfolk Island

  (2) If a public sector agency is required under any other law to prepare a report on the operation of the authority, the authority may prepare a report that complies with both this Act and the other law.

Application of Act

 17. (1) For an annual report, this Act applies in relation to a financial year that ends after the commencement of this section, whether or not the financial year includes a period that began before the commencement.

  (2) This section expires on 1 July 2006.

Dictionary

 18. Note : The Interpretation Act 1979 and the Norfolk Island Act 1979 contain definitions and other provisions relevant to this Act.

annual report means—

(a) a statement in accordance with sections 8A and 36C of the Public Moneys Act 1979; or

(b) a Chief Executive Officer’s annual report; or

(c) a public sector agency annual report; or

(d) the Auditor’s report under section 13.

annual report direction—see section 8.

Chief Executive Officer’s annual report—see section 5.

financial year —

(a) for a report under the Public Moneys Act 1979—see section 6 of that Act;

(b) for a Chief Executive Officer’s annual report—see section 25 of the Public Sector Management Act 2000; or

(c) for a public sector agency annual report—see section 25 of the Public Sector Management Act 2004.

public sector agency annual report—see section 6.

public sector agency means—

(a) a territory instrumentality; or

(b) a statutory office-holder declared under subsection 14(1) to be a public sector agency; or

(c) an entity declared under subsection 14(2) to be a public sector agency

and includes the Public Service Board.

responsible Minister—

(a) for a report under the Public Moneys Act 1979 — see subsection 10(1);

(b) for a Chief Executive Officer’s annual report — see section 9; or

(c) for a public sector agency annual report — see subsection 10(2).

Speaker—see subsection 11(4) (Responsible Minister to present annual report).

territory instrumentality—means a body corporate that is established by or under an enactment (including the Companies Act 1985) and  —

(a) is comprised of persons, or has a governing body comprised of persons, a majority of whom are appointed by or on behalf of the Crown, the Administration or the Legislative Assembly; or

(b) is subject to direction or control by an Minister; or

(c) is declared by regulation to be a territory instrumentality for the purposes of this definition,

but does not include —

(d) the public service; or

(e) a body declared by regulation not to be a territory instrumentality for the purposes of this definition.

NOTES

The Annual Reports Act 2004 as shown in this consolidation comprises Act No. 22 of 2004 and amendments as indicated in the Tables below.

Table of Amendments

© Norfolk Island Government 2013

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