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House of Representatives                                Ch 10                                                 p 396

Errors in bills assented to

In 1976 the Governor-General purportedly assented to a bill which had not been passed by both Houses of Parliament as required by section 58 of the Constitution. A States Grants (Aboriginal Assistance) Bill 1976 passed the House ¹ but did not proceed past the second reading stage in the Senate. A second bill, slightly different in content but with exactly the same title, passed the House ² and the Senate. ³ Due to a clerical error in the Department of the House of Representatives, the Clerk’s certificate, as to the bill having originated in the House and having finally passed both Houses, was placed on the first bill which had not passed both Houses and that bill was assented to. When the error was discovered, the Governor-General cancelled his signature on the incorrect bill and gave his assent to the second bill, which had passed both Houses. ⁴ A similar cancellation occurred in the case of the Family and Community Services and Veterans’ Affairs Legislation Amendment (Debt Recovery) Bill 2001, when due to a clerical error a Senate amendment which had not been agreed to by the House was incorporated into the original assent print. ⁵

It is considered that should a bill be assented to with typographical or clerical errors in it, if necessary a court would interpret the Act so as to remedy the mistake (the ‘slip rule’) and there would be no question of invalidity. Depending on the circumstances, legislative amendment at a suitable time may still be desirable. ⁶

VP 1976-77/240.

VP 1976-77/480.

J 1976-77/528.

VP 1976-77/575; H.R. Deb. (15.2.77) 2-10.

VP 1998-2001/2379; H.R. Deb. (21.6.2001) 28261-2.

Advice from Attorney-General’s Department, 17 October 1995.