On 20 May 2021, the Australian Ministers responsible for work health and safety (WHS) considered the recommendations from the 2018 Review of the model WHS laws (the Review) and agreement was reached for action on all 34 recommendations of the Review.
Areas addressed by the Review included the legislative framework; duties of care; consultation representation and participation; compliance and enforcement; prosecutions and legal proceedings; and the Model WHS Regulations.
Safe Work Australia prepared a Council of Australian Governments (COAG) decision Regulation Impact Statement (RIS) that was provided to the WHS Ministers’ Meeting to inform their decision. The RIS was assessed by the Office of Best Practice Regulation as compliant with the COAG Best Practice Regulation requirements.