House of Representatives

Explanatory Memorandum

(Circulated by the authority of the Assistant Minister for Defence, the Hon Stuart Robert MP)

Notes on clauses

Clause 1: Short title

3. Clause 1 provides for the short title of the Act to be the Defence Legislation Amendment (Superannuation and ADF Cover) Act 2015 (the Act).

Clause 2: Commencement

4. Clause 2 is the commencement provision for the Act and includes a table setting out the details of the commencement of sections of the Act. Column 1 of the table sets out the provisions in numbered items, column 2 sets out the commencement and column 3 sets out date/details. Information in column 3 (which is currently blank) does not form part of the Act, so information can subsequently be inserted in the column (or edited) in a published version of the Act.

5. Item 1 in the table provides that sections 1 to 3 of the Act and anything in the Act not covered elsewhere in the table commences when the Act receives Royal Assent.

6. Item 2 in the table provides that the main amendments in Schedule 1 (to the Defence Act 1903, the Defence Force Retirement and Death Benefits Act 1973, the Future Fund Act 2006, the Governance of Australian Government Superannuation Schemes Act 2011, the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997, the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004, the Military Superannuation and Benefits Act 1991, the Superannuation Act 2005, the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 and the Superannuation (Resolution of Complaints) Act 1993) commence at the later of the day after Royal Assent to the Act and the commencement of the Australian Defence Force Superannuation Act 2015 (ADF Super Act). If the ADF Super Act does not commence, the amendments in Schedule 1 do not commence.

7. Item 3 in the table provides that the flexible service arrangements set out in Schedule 2 commence at the later of Royal Assent and 1 July 2016.

8. Item 4 in the table provides that amendments that are contingent on the Acts and Instruments (Framework Reform) Act 2015 set out in Schedule 3 commence at the later of the commencement of Schedule 1 of the Act and the commencement of Schedule 1 of the Acts and Instruments (Framework Reform) Act 2015.

9. A note to the reader stipulates that the table only relates to the provisions originally enacted and will not be amended to reflect later amendments to the sections of the Act.

Clause 3: Schedules

10. Clause 3 provides that amendments to legislation contained in the Act are set out in the Schedules to the Act and any other item in a schedule to the Act has effect according to its terms.