A petition seeking the holding of an indicative referendum may, in accordance with this Act, be presented to the House of Representatives.

An indicative referendum petition shall not relate to a matter that is or could be or could have been the subject of an election petition under Part 8 of the Electoral Act 1993 or of an application under this Act.

Every indicative referendum petition—

Neither an indicative referendum petition nor an indicative referendum may relate to more than 1 question.

Every person who proposes to promote an indicative referendum petition shall submit the proposal to the Clerk of the House of Representatives.

The proposal shall be accompanied by—

The proposal shall clearly state—

The Clerk of the House of Representatives shall, as soon as practicable after receiving a proposal that complies with section 6, publish in the Gazette, and in such newspapers as he or she considers necessary, notice of the receipt of that proposal.

The notice—

Where a proposal relates to an indicative referendum petition that would contravene section 4, the Clerk of the House of Representatives shall not publish, under subsection (1), notice of the receipt of that proposal.

The Clerk of the House of Representatives, on receiving any comments made under section 7(2)(b), shall—

The Clerk of the House of Representatives, before making a determination under section 11,—

The wording of the precise question to be put to the voters, as determined under section 11 by the Clerk of the House of Representatives,—

Subject to subsection (1), the Clerk of the House of Representatives, in making a determination under section 11,—

The Clerk of the House of Representatives shall determine the wording of the precise question to be put to voters in the proposed indicative referendum.

The Clerk of the House of Representatives shall make the determination within 3 months after the date on which the Clerk of the House of Representatives receives, under section 6, the proposal to promote the indicative referendum petition unless,—

As soon as practicable after the making of a determination under section 11, the Clerk of the House of Representatives shall approve in writing, in relation to the indicative referendum petition, the form to be used for the collection of signatures to the petition.

The Clerk of the House of Representatives may consult the Government Statistician and such other persons as the Clerk of the House of Representatives thinks fit about the suitability of any form.

As soon as practicable after giving an approval under section 12, the Clerk of the House of Representatives—

Every notice under subsection (1) shall specify—

Subject to subsections (2) and (3), and to section 15, the promoter of an indicative referendum petition may, on receiving notification under section 13(1), proceed to promote the petition and to collect signatures.

All signatures to the indicative referendum petition must be on forms approved in writing in relation to that petition under section 12.

It shall be the responsibility of the promoter to ensure that a sufficient quantity of forms is made available and that the forms are printed in accordance with the approval given by the Clerk of the House of Representatives.

Every signatory to an indicative referendum petition—

Failure by a signatory to comply with any of the requirements of subsection (1) shall not of itself prevent the signature of that signatory from being used for the purposes of determining the number of signatures that must be checked in accordance with section 19.

The promoter shall deliver the indicative referendum petition to the Clerk of the House of Representatives within 12 months after the date of the publication in the Gazette of the notice required by section 13(1)(b).

Subject to section 20, no pages or signatures shall be added to an indicative referendum petition after it has been delivered to the Clerk of the House of Representatives.

An indicative referendum petition shall lapse if it is not delivered to the Clerk of the House of Representatives within the time prescribed by subsection (3).

After receiving an indicative referendum petition pursuant to section 15(3), the Clerk of the House of Representatives shall disregard any signature that is not on a form supplied by the promoter and approved by the Clerk of the House of Representatives under section 14(2).

Where the Clerk of the House of Representatives finds that the total number of signatures on a petition delivered to him or her pursuant to section 15(3) is less than the number of eligible electors required to sign a petition before it can be certified correct under section 18(1), the petition shall lapse and the Clerk of the House of Representatives shall notify the promoter accordingly.

Signatures disregarded under subsection (1) shall not be taken into account for the purpose of ascertaining—

Where the Clerk of the House of Representatives receives an indicative referendum petition that complies with section 14(2), the Clerk of the House of Representatives shall, within 2 months after the date on which he or she receives the indicative referendum petition, either—

Subject to the provisions of this Act, an indicative referendum petition shall be certified correct by the Clerk of the House of Representatives if he or she is satisfied, in accordance with section 19, that the petition has, after the date on which the promoter received the written notice required by section 13(1)(a), been signed by not less than 10% of the eligible electors.

For the purpose of ascertaining whether an indicative referendum petition has, after the date on which the promoter received the written notice required by section 13(1)(a), been signed by not less than 10% of the eligible electors, the Clerk of the House of Representatives shall, with the assistance of the Government Statistician,—

The Clerk of the House of Representatives must give to the Electoral Commission established by section 4B of the Electoral Act 1993 the signatures taken under subsection (1)(b).

The Electoral Commission must check whether or not the signatories are eligible electors and shall give the result to the Clerk of the House of Representatives.

The Clerk of the House of Representatives shall, on receiving the result, determine, with the assistance of the Government Statistician, whether or not the indicative referendum petition has, after the date on which the promoter received the written notice required by section 13(1)(a), been signed by not less than 10% of the eligible electors.

Notwithstanding that an indicative referendum petition has been delivered to the Clerk of the House of Representatives under section 15(3), the promoter of that petition may continue to collect signatures to that petition and those signatures may be added to that petition if it is resubmitted to the Clerk of the House of Representatives under subsection (2).

Where an indicative referendum petition has lapsed under section 16 or section 18, the promoter of that petition may at any time within 2 months after the date on which the petition lapsed, resubmit that petition to the Clerk of the House of Representatives.

Where a petition that is resubmitted under subsection (2) is not certified correct under section 18, that petition shall lapse and may not be resubmitted pursuant to this section.

The Speaker, on receiving from the Clerk of the House of Representatives an indicative referendum petition certified correct under section 18(1)(a), shall forthwith—

This section applies when a petition that has been certified correct under section 18(1)(a) is presented to the House of Representatives under section 21.

Within 1 month after the date on which the indicative referendum petition is presented to the House of Representatives, the Governor-General must either—

An order under subsection (2)(a) is secondary legislation (see Part 3 of the Legislation Act 2019 for publication requirements).

The date appointed under section 22(2)(a) for holding the indicative referendum under this Act must be a date within 12 months after the date on which the indicative referendum petition is presented to the House of Representatives.

However, subsection (1) does not apply in the circumstances described in subsection (3) or subsection (5).

The circumstances referred to in subsection (2) are that—

In the circumstances described in subsection (3), the date on which the indicative referendum is held is the date fixed by the House of Representatives.

The circumstances referred to in subsection (2) are that—

In the circumstances described in subsection (5), the indicative referendum is held on polling day.

If a writ for a general election is issued under section 125 of the Electoral Act 1993 after an Order in Council has been made under section 22(2)(a), the Governor-General may, by Order in Council, revoke the former Order in Council and appoint the polling day for the general election as the day on which the indicative referendum is to be held.

An order under subsection (7) is secondary legislation (see Part 3 of the Legislation Act 2019 for publication requirements).

This section applies when the Governor-General makes an Order in Council in accordance with section 22(2)(b) specifying that the indicative referendum be conducted by postal voting.

The Friday appointed by the Governor-General under section 30(2) of the Referenda (Postal Voting) Act 2000 must be within 12 months after the date on which the indicative referendum petition is presented to the House of Representatives.

However, subsection (2) does not apply in the circumstances described in subsection (4) or subsection (6).

The circumstances are that—

In the circumstances described in subsection (4),—

The circumstances referred to in subsection (3) are that—

In the circumstances described in subsection (6), the date on which the voting period closes is polling day.

If a writ for a general election is issued under section 125 of the Electoral Act 1993 after an Order in Council has been made in accordance with section 22(2)(b), the Governor-General may, by Order in Council, revoke the former Order in Council and appoint the polling day for the general election as the day on which the voting period closes.

An order under subsection (8) is secondary legislation (see Part 3 of the Legislation Act 2019 for publication requirements).

The promoter of an indicative referendum petition may withdraw that petition by delivering to the Clerk of the House of Representatives a notice in writing withdrawing that petition, before the Governor-General has, under section 26 or section 26A, as the case may require, issued a writ for the holding of the indicative referendum.

Where a promoter withdraws an indicative referendum petition in accordance with subsection (1), the indicative referendum shall not be held.

Where an indicative referendum is withdrawn under subsection (1), the Clerk of the House of Representatives shall, forthwith after the receipt by the Clerk of the House of Representatives of the notice of withdrawal,—

The Clerk of the House of Representatives shall not delegate to any other person (other than the Deputy Clerk of the House of Representatives) all or any of the Clerk’s functions under any of the provisions of sections 9, 11, 12, 13, 18, and 19.

Nothing in this section affects the operation of section 5 or section 6 of the Clerk of the House of Representatives Act 1988.

This section applies when the Governor-General makes an Order in Council under section 22(2)(a) appointing the date on which the indicative referendum is to be held under this Act.

This section is subject to the provisions of this Act and of any regulations made under this Act.

The indicative referendum is taken in the manner prescribed by the Electoral Act 1993 for the taking of an electoral poll.

The provisions of the Electoral Act 1993 and of any regulations made under that Act, as far as they are applicable and with the necessary modifications, apply to the indicative referendum as if it were an electoral poll.

However, the sections of the Electoral Act 1993 that do not apply to an indicative referendum are sections 4B to 9, 28 to 38, 41 to 45(8), 46 to 59, 62 to 71, 113, 125 to 140, 143 to 146L, 148 to 154, 157(2), 160(1), (3), (4), and (8), 165(1)(b), 168(1) to (3), 170(6), 174(4), 179(1)(a), 180(1) to (5), 180(7)(e), 181, 183, 185, 186, 191 to 193A, 196A, 197 to 199, 203 to 210F, 221A, 229 to 231, 236(3), 236(8), 237 to 239, 243 to 246, 256(1)(c), 256(2), 256(3), 258 to 262, 264, 267, 268, and 269 to 284.

This section applies when the Governor-General makes an Order in Council in accordance with section 22(2)(b) specifying that the indicative referendum be conducted by postal voting.

The provisions of the Electoral Act 1993 and of any regulations made under that Act apply to the indicative referendum to the extent provided by the Referenda (Postal Voting) Act 2000. The provisions invoked by the Referenda (Postal Voting) Act 2000 apply to the indicative referendum as far as they are applicable and with the necessary modifications.

However, the sections of the Electoral Act 1993 that do not apply to an indicative referendum conducted by postal voting are sections 4B to 9, 28 to 38, 41 to 45(8), 46 to 59, 61 to 71, 113, 125 to 177, 178(8), 179(1)(a), 180(1) to (5), 180(7)(e), 181 to 199, 203 to 205S, 207 to 207P (so far as they are applicable to candidate donations), 209 to 209E, 215 to 219, 221A, 229 to 231, 236(3), 236(8), 237 to 239, 243 to 246, 256(1)(c), 256(2), 256(3), 258 to 262, 264, and 266 to 284.

This section applies when the Governor-General makes an Order in Council in accordance with section 22(2)(b) specifying that the indicative referendum be conducted by postal voting.

Sections 27, 29 to 38, 40A, 40B, 48 to 51G, 52, 53, 54, and 58 do not apply to the indicative referendum.

This section applies when the Governor-General makes an Order in Council, under section 22(2)(a) or section 22AA(7), appointing the date on which an indicative referendum is to be held under this Act.

The Governor-General must issue a writ in form 2 of the Schedule to the Electoral Commission requiring the Electoral Commission to make all necessary arrangements for the conduct of the indicative referendum.

If the indicative referendum is to be held on the polling day for a general election, the writ must be issued on the day on which the writ for the general election is issued.

If the indicative referendum is to be held on another day, the writ must be issued at least 28 days before the day on which the indicative referendum is to be held.

The latest day for the return of the writ must be stated in the writ.

The latest day for the return of the writ is,—

This section applies when the Governor-General makes an Order in Council in accordance with section 22(2)(b) specifying the indicative referendum as a referendum that must be conducted by postal voting.

The Governor-General must issue a writ in form 2A of the Schedule to the Electoral Commission requiring the Electoral Commission to conduct the indicative referendum.

If the voting period for the indicative referendum ends on the polling day for a general election, the writ must be issued on the day on which the writ for the general election is issued.

If the voting period for the indicative referendum ends on another day, the writ must be issued at least 28 days before the commencement of that period.

The latest day for the return of the writ must be stated in the writ.

The latest day for the return of the writ is the 60th day after the issue of the writ.

Immediately after receiving a writ for an indicative referendum, the Electoral Commission must notify the following persons of the issue and the contents of the writ:

If the indicative referendum is not to be conducted by postal voting, the Electoral Commission must also notify the Returning Officer for each electoral district.

Subject to the provisions of this Act and to any regulations made under this Act, the electoral rolls for the purpose of the indicative referendum shall,—

For the purposes of the indicative referendum,—

Where any person applies for registration as an elector of a district after a writ has been issued for the holding of the indicative referendum and before the day appointed for the taking of the indicative referendum,—

The voting paper shall—

Any 10 or more electors who are in favour of one answer to the question may, by nomination paper signed by each of those electors, nominate any 2 specified persons to appoint 1 or more scrutineers to act at each polling place in the district in the interest of all electors who are in favour of that answer.

Any 10 or more electors who are in favour of the other of the 2 answers may, in like manner, nominate any 2 specified persons to appoint 1 or more scrutineers to act at each polling place in the interest of all electors who are in favour of that answer.

The nomination paper shall be in form 3 of the Schedule.

The nomination paper shall be lodged with the Returning Officer of the electoral district not later than the 12th day before the day on which the indicative referendum is to be held, and shall be open to public inspection.

On a day to be publicly notified by the Returning Officer of the electoral district, being not earlier than the tenth nor later than the fifth day before the day on which the indicative referendum is to be held, the Returning Officer shall publicly consider all the nomination papers duly lodged, and, after hearing all objections, select 2 fit persons to appoint one scrutineer, and 2 fit persons to appoint the other scrutineer, to act at each polling place in the respective interests as aforesaid; and the persons so selected may appoint accordingly.

The selection shall be signed by the Returning Officer and shall be in form 4 of the Schedule.

The appointment shall in each case be signed by the persons selected, and shall be in form 5 of the Schedule.

Every scrutineer so appointed shall, for the purposes of the indicative referendum, have all the powers and rights of a scrutineer under the Electoral Act 1993, and shall make a declaration in a form that the Electoral Commission has approved.

Without limiting subsection (1), a scrutineer so appointed—

The number of scrutineers for each answer who may be present in a polling place may not exceed the number of issuing officers designated for the polling place.

The remuneration (if any) of the scrutineers shall not be paid out of public money appropriated for the purposes of conducting the indicative referendum.

If the result of any indicative referendum in any electoral district is disputed on the ground that the public declaration by the Electoral Commission in accordance with section 179(2) of the Electoral Act 1993 (as applied by this Act) was incorrect, the following provisions shall apply:

An Electoral Commissioner must, on behalf of the Electoral Commission,—

The date endorsed on the writ under subsection (1) is the day of the return of the writ.

The writ must be returned within the time specified in the writ for its return.

If any application for a recount of the votes has been made, the Electoral Commission must postpone the return of the writ until the completion of every recount.

If, at any time before the expiry of the time for an application for a recount of the votes, it appears to the Electoral Commission that such an application may be made, the Electoral Commission may postpone the return of the writ until that expiry.

If the voting period for an indicative referendum conducted by postal voting is extended under section 37 of the Referenda (Postal Voting) Act 2000, the Electoral Commission may postpone the return of the writ until as soon as practicable after noon on the fourth day after the last day of the extended voting period.

Subsection (5A) applies whether the voting period is extended in relation to the whole or any area or areas of New Zealand, or any or all of Tokelau, Campbell Island, Raoul Island, or the Ross Dependency.

Subsections (4) to (5B) prevail over subsections (1) to (3).

This section applies when the Governor-General makes an Order in Council, under section 22(2)(a) or section 22AA(7), appointing the date on which an indicative referendum is to be held under this Act.

The Electoral Commission—

The Minister of Justice must, as soon as practicable, present to the House of Representatives a copy of the notice given to the Minister of Justice under subsection (2)(b).

This section applies when the Governor-General makes an Order in Council in accordance with section 22(2)(b) specifying that the indicative referendum be conducted by postal voting.

The result of an indicative referendum conducted by postal voting must be declared under section 49 of the Referenda (Postal Voting) Act 2000.

Every official, clerk, scrutineer, interpreter, or other person appointed for the purposes of this Act shall use or disclose information acquired by him or her in that capacity only in accordance with his or her official duty or his or her duty as a scrutineer, as the case may require.

No person, except for some purpose authorised by law, shall—

Every person in attendance at the counting of the votes shall maintain and aid in maintaining the secrecy of the voting, and shall not communicate any information obtained at the counting as to the answer for which any vote is given in any particular voting paper.

No person shall directly or indirectly induce any voter to display his or her voting paper or any piece of his or her voting paper after he or she has marked it, so as to make known to any person the answer for which he or she has voted.

Every person is guilty of a corrupt practice within the meaning of the Electoral Act 1993 who wilfully contravenes any provision of section 40A of this Act.

No person shall, at any time in the indicative referendum period, or, in the case of an indicative referendum conducted by postal voting, at any time during the voting period, publish or cause or permit to be published in any newspaper, periodical, poster, or handbill, or broadcast or cause or permit to be broadcast over any radio or television station, any advertisement used or appearing to be used in connection with the indicative referendum petition or to promote one of the answers to the precise question in the indicative referendum unless the advertisement contains a statement setting out the true name of the person for whom or at whose direction it is published or broadcast and the address of that person’s place of residence or business.

For the purposes of this section, the term indicative referendum period means, in relation to an indicative referendum, the period commencing on the day after the date of the publication in the Gazette, in relation to the indicative referendum petition, of the notice required by section 13(1)(b), and ending with the close of the day before the day on which the referendum is held.

Every person is guilty of an illegal practice within the meaning of the Electoral Act 1993 who wilfully contravenes subsection (1).

Nothing in this section shall restrict the publication of any news or comments relating to the indicative referendum petition or the indicative referendum in a newspaper or other periodical or in a radio or television broadcast made by a broadcaster within the meaning of section 2 of the Broadcasting Act 1989.

Every person commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $20,000 who, either alone or in combination with others,—

In this section,—

Every advertiser must make a return to the Electoral Commission as follows:

Every person commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $20,000 who fails, without reasonable excuse, to comply with subsection (1A).

Every person who makes, under subsection (1A), a return that is false in any material particular—

Every person charged with an offence against subsection (4)(a) may be convicted of an offence against subsection (4)(b).

It shall be the duty of the Electoral Commission to see that the provisions of sections 41 to 43 are faithfully complied with.

Where the Electoral Commission believes that any person has committed an offence against any of the provisions of sections 41 to 43, the Electoral Commission must report the facts on which that belief is based to the Police.

Every return under section 43—

At the end of the period specified in subsection (1), the Electoral Commission must cause the return to be destroyed.

The sections of the Electoral Act 1993 described in subsection (2), as far as they are applicable and with the necessary modifications, shall apply to a petition for an inquiry under section 48.

The sections of the Electoral Act 1993 referred to in subsection (1) are sections 232 to 234, 235, 236(1), (2), (4) to (7), 240, 241, 242, 247 to 255, 256(1)(a) and (b), and 257.

If a group of at least 50 electors in an electoral district is dissatisfied with the result of the indicative referendum in that district, the group may apply to the High Court for an inquiry into the conduct of the referendum or of any person connected with it.

Any group of at least 6 electors in the electoral district to which an application relates may file notice of its intention to oppose the application or, if there is more than 1, to oppose specified applications.

The notice must be in the prescribed form.

Such a notice must be filed at least 3 working days before the day fixed for the start of the hearing.

A group filing such a notice within that time becomes a respondent to the application or applications.

The person complained of is a respondent to the application if the person is—

The application must be in form 6 of the Schedule, or in a similar form.

The application must state the specific grounds on which the applicant is dissatisfied with the result of the referendum.

An applicant makes its application by filing the application in the High Court nearest to the place where the spokesperson for the applicant lives.

An applicant must make its application within 20 working days after the Electoral Commission has declared the result of the referendum under section 179(2) of the Electoral Act 1993 (as applied by this Act).

The Registrar of the court must send a copy of the application to the Returning Officer as soon as practicable after it is filed.

An application must be served on a group that becomes a respondent under section 49 as soon as practicable after the group files its notice.

An application that asks for an inquiry into the conduct of a person connected with the indicative referendum must be served on the person complained of as soon as practicable after it is made.

An application must be served in a manner as close as possible to that in which a statement of claim is served.

At the hearing, the court has jurisdiction to inquire into and adjudicate on any matter relating to the application in any manner that the court thinks fit.

The court may give leave for grounds other than those stated in the application to be inquired into. The leave may be given on any terms and conditions that the court considers just.

Evidence may be given to prove that the total number of valid votes recorded for each of the 2 answers to the precise question was other than that declared, without any applicant having to state that as a ground of dissatisfaction or the court having to give leave for that ground to be inquired into.

At the end of a hearing, the court must do one of the following:

When the court declares a indicative referendum void, a fresh indicative referendum must be held in the manner specified by this Act.

The Registrar of the court must notify the Electoral Commission that the indicative referendum has been declared void.

The Electoral Commission must, by notice in the Gazette, fix a day for the holding of the fresh indicative referendum, which must be no later than 30 working days after the date on which the Electoral Commission is notified under subsection (2).

At the fresh indicative referendum the same roll of electors must be used as was used at the voided indicative referendum.

Every person commits an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $5,000 who, at an indicative referendum,—

It shall be a defence to a prosecution for an offence against subsection (1)(g) that relates to the exhibition in or in view of a public place of a statement, name, emblem, slogan, or logo, if the defendant proves that—

Nothing in this section shall apply to any official statement or announcement made or exhibited under the authority of this Act or the Electoral Act 1993.

The Returning Officer may at any time on the day on which the referendum is held before the close of the poll cause to be removed or obliterated—

which is exhibited in or in view of any public place.

Nothing in subsection (1)(c) shall apply to ribbons, streamers, rosettes, or items of a similar nature which are worn or displayed by any person (whether on his or her person or on any vehicle) in colours that are identified with any answer to the question to which the indicative referendum relates or with any proponent of any such answer or to a lapel badge worn by any person.

Nothing in subsection (1) shall apply to a statement, name, emblem, slogan, or logo which does not relate specifically to the indicative referendum and which was so exhibited before the day on which the referendum is held in a fixed position and in relation to the New Zealand or regional or campaign headquarters (not being mobile headquarters) of a proponent of any answer to the question to which the indicative referendum relates.

All expenses incurred by the Returning Officer in carrying out the power conferred by subsection (1) may be recovered by the Returning Officer from the persons by whom or by whose direction the statement, name, emblem, slogan, or logo was exhibited, as a debt due by them jointly and severally to the Crown.

Every person is guilty of a corrupt practice within the meaning of the Electoral Act 1993 who commits the offence of bribery of a promoter.

Every person commits the offence of bribery of a promoter who, directly or indirectly, by himself or herself or by any other person on his or her behalf—

or who, upon or in consequence of any such gift or procurement as aforesaid, procures, or engages, promises, or endeavours to procure, the withdrawal of an indicative referendum petition.

For the purposes of this section,—

Every person commits the offence of bribery who—

The foregoing provisions of this section shall not extend or be construed to extend to any money paid or agreed to be paid for or on account of any legal expenses incurred in good faith in relation to an indicative referendum petition.

A promoter commits the offence of bribery of a promoter if, before or during an indicative referendum petition, he or she directly or indirectly, by himself or herself or by any other person on his or her behalf, receives, or agrees or contracts for, any money, gift, loan, or valuable consideration, office, place, or employment for himself or herself or for any other person for withdrawing an indicative referendum petition or agreeing to withdraw an indicative referendum petition.

Every person commits the offence of bribery of a promoter if, after the withdrawal of an indicative referendum petition, he or she directly or indirectly, by himself or herself or by any other person on his or her behalf, receives any money or valuable consideration on account of a promoter having withdrawn an indicative referendum petition or having induced a promoter to withdraw an indicative referendum petition.

Nothing in this section shall be construed to extend to any actions taken by a person in good faith in resolving or attempting to resolve the issues raised by an indicative referendum petition.

Every person is guilty of a corrupt practice within the meaning of the Electoral Act 1993 who—

Every person commits an offence who, at an indicative referendum,—

Every person who commits an offence against subsection (1)(a) shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $2,000.

Every person who commits an offence against subsection (1)(b) shall be liable on conviction to the same penalty as that for which he or she would have been liable if he or she had committed the offence under the Electoral Act 1993.

Two or more indicative referenda may be held on the same day.

One or more indicative referenda may be held during the voting period for 1 or more referenda (within the meaning of the Referenda (Postal Voting) Act 2000).

All expenses incidental to the holding of an indicative referendum under this Act shall be paid out of public money without further appropriation than this section.

Nothing in subsection (1) applies in respect of—

The Ombudsmen Act 1975 and the Official Information Act 1982 shall apply in relation to the Clerk of the House of Representatives as if the Clerk of the House of Representatives were, in relation to the functions conferred on the Clerk of the House of Representatives by this Act, an organisation named in Schedule 1 of the Ombudsmen Act 1975.

The Governor-General may from time to time, by Order in Council, make regulations for all or any of the following purposes:

Regulations under this section are secondary legislation (see Part 3 of the Legislation Act 2019 for publication requirements).

Rules of court may be made in the manner prescribed in the Senior Courts Act 2016 for the purposes of Part 6.

Nothing in this Act affects in any way the right of any person to petition the House of Representatives, or the jurisdiction of any committee or other body set up by the House of Representatives to deal with a petition to the House of Representatives.