CO885-(15-16) — Page 289

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SIR,

No. 200.

(AUSTRALIA.)

LAW OFFICERS to COLONIAL OFFICE.

[Reservation of Acts passed by the Australian States.]

Royal Courts of Justice,

August 6, 1903. WE were honoured with your commands signified to us by Mr. Bertram Cox in his letter of the 8th May last, stating that with reference to our letter of the 8th April last he was directed by you to lay before us a Memorandum on the reserva- tion of Acts passed by the present Legislatures of the six Australian States, which had been prepared in your Department.

That Part III. of this Memorandum was almost entirely founded on our Report of the 8th April last, and that Part I. was, to a large extent, founded upon Reports which had been made at various times by ourselves or our predecessors in office to the Secretary of State for the Colonies.

That he was especially to direct our attention to Part II. of the Memorandum, which dealt with a subject which had not, so far as could be ascertained, previously formed the subject of a Report by the Law Officers of the Crown, viz., the present application of Section 7 of 7 and 8 Victoria, c. 74.

That with regard to the repeal by the Statute Law Revision Act (No. 2), 1893, of Section 32 of 13 and 14 Victoria, c. 59 as regards Victoria and Western Australia he was to observe that if it was repealed as regards these two Colonies, because it had already been applied to them by 18 and 19 Victoria c. 55, and 53 and 54 Victoria c. 26 respectively, it was difficult to see why it was not also repealed as regards New South Wales to which it was applied by 18 and 19 Victoria c. 54.

That the Memorandum had been prepared primarily with a view to the legis- lation proposed in the last paragraph of our Report of the 8th April last, as it was considered that a summary of the present law as understood in this country would facilitate an agreement with the Governments of the various States as to the classes of Bills which should be required to be reserved by the proposed Act of Parliament. That if, however, such an agreement was not attained and the proposed Imperial Act was not passed, the Memorandum, when and as approved by us, would prove of considerable use, not only in your Department, but also as a definite indication to the Governments of the various States of the views of the Secretary of State as to the reservation of their Acts.

That it was, therefore, proposed, subject to our approval, to forward the Memo- randum, when we had revised and settled its terms, to the Governments of the six States of the Commonwealth, at the same time laying before them the proposal contained in the last paragraph of our Report of the 8th of April, and inviting their observations.

That he was to observe that the marginal references in the Memorandum to Law Officers' Reports were only inserted for our convenience, and would not appear in the Memorandum as sent out to the Colonies.

That he was to suggest, for our consideration, as an alternative to the proposal contained in the last paragraph of our Report of the 8th April, that the proposed Imperial Act might well repeal all the existing enactments as to the reservation of Bills in the Australian States, without re-enacting them in any form, it being left to His Majesty to fix by Letters Patent or Instructions what Bills or classes of Bills should in future be reserved.

That he was accordingly to request us to settle the Memorandum for use in your office, and to report

(1.) Whether it should be sent out to the six Australian States?

(2.) Whether the course suggested in the seventh paragraph of his letter should be adopted, and, if so,

(3.) Whether the alternative suggested in the ninth paragraph of his letter should be laid before the various Colonial Governments?

95 WE 661 H 08 D&R S 18407

• No. 183,

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

FIE

C.O. 885

Reference :-

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