Developing Policy / Preparing Legislation An Overview
Graeme Buchanan, Deputy Secretary - Legal, Department of Labour, Legislation Advisory Committee
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From the Wellington District Law Society Seminar
3rd April 2006
How we approach a Policy/Legislative Exercise
- It’s a Project
- We must Project Manage it!
- The product will be like a contract with a
- large part of NZ’s population!
POLICY LEGISLATION
Working together
- Both lawyers and policy advisers
- Joint project team
- We allocate leadership responsibility
- We have single point liaison
- We get team together early
- We set clear expectations
POLICY LEGISLATION
Project Management
- We plan/map out structure of exercise
- We plan/map out components/issues
- We allocate responsibilities
- We set timeframes around milestones (next slide for details)
- We have procedures re LAC Guidelines
MUST BE REALISTIC!
POLICY LEGISLATION
Milestones (backwards!)
- Introduction to House
- Cabinet Approval
- Cab LEG
- Caucus Approval
- Political consultation
- PCO drafting time
- Preparation of drafting instructions
- Cabinet policy decisions
- Policy development processes
- Minister
- Central Agencies
- Other Departments
- Public consultation?
POLICY LEGISLATION
Developing the Policy
- Is legislation necessary (Ch.1, Guidelines)
- Applying the Guidelines (next presentation)
- Writing the Cabinet Papers
- Workable packages of options
- Can’t constrain drafting options
- Recognise that further issues will emerge
- Have an agreed process for resolving those
POLICY LEGISLATION
Preparing Instructions for PCO
- We put ourselves in PCO’s shoes
- We assemble relevant background material
- Drafting not necessary, but sometimes helps
- We always provide a narrative description
POLICY LEGISLATION
Managing the Draft Bill
- Work as a team still
- Agree on a feedback process with PCO
- Keep good records
- Map scenarios / reality test
- Policy Statement important too
- Commencement dates – achievable?
POLICY LEGISLATION
Cabinet Legislation Committee
- Not just a formality
- LEG paper asserts compliance with LAC Guidelines
- All that’s gone before therefore provides assurance for that statement
POLICY LEGISLATION
Managing a Bill through the House
- LAC Guidelines are still relevant
- Select Committee
- Departmental Report
- Cabinet Decisions to support Recs
- Committee of the Whole
- Amendments on the run
- Alert to implications
- Standing Orders
- Financial veto