On behalf of the Ministerial Council for Corporations, the Honourable Chris Pearce MP, Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasurer and Chairman of the Ministerial Council, made the following announcement today:
At today’s meeting of the Ministerial Council for Corporations, Ministers unanimously endorsed a five year extension to the current references of corporations and related power from the States to the Commonwealth.
The current arrangements commenced in 2001, and were due to expire in 2006. Today’s agreement extends these arrangements until 2011.
The purpose of addressing this issue now is to ensure a constitutional foundation for regulating Australia’s 1.3 million companies.
Meanwhile, the Standing Committee of Attorneys General is continuing its consideration of possible amendments to the Constitution as an alternative basis for such legislative schemes. The aim of such an amendment would be to provide a sound constitutional basis for ‘co-operative’ schemes, such as the scheme for the regulation of corporations and related matters which existed in the 1990s. Such schemes rely directly on both State and Commonwealth power, and do not involve a referral of power.
The meeting was attended by Ministers representing the Commonwealth, all the States, and the Northern Territory.
5 November 2004
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