Disclosure statementsDisclosure statements are departmental documents that provide information about the development and content of legislation proposed by the Government.
They seek to assist the Parliamentary and public scrutiny of a Bill or Supplementary Order Paper (SOP). They complement the general policy statement by the minister that accompanies any new legislation, and will usually include background material, reviews, the results of any consultation undertaken, evaluation or advice received, Generally, disclosure statements should identify:
- the policy objectives of the Bill or SOP
- some of the key processes that departments are expected to have followed during the development and testing of the content of the Bill or SOP
- certain significant powers or unusual features in the Bill or SOP that may be of particular Parliamentary or public interest and may warrant further explanation.