• “The ‘rule of law’ is the principle that all people are equal before the law and must obey the law. The rule of law means that laws apply to everyone, including the people that make them. To make sure everyone knows the law and their rights, laws should be easy to find out about, easy to understand and enforced.” (The No Gobbledygook Principle).
• “Parliamentary sovereignty is a fundamental principle of the rule of law and the Westminster legal system. It dictates that only parliament has the authority to make, amend, or repeal statutory laws, ensuring that the rules governing society are created by publicly elected representatives rather than by the executive or judicial branches.” (The Parliament is sovereign Principle).

• Exemption: PR DA .000.19.2 issued on 12 January 2026;
• Exemption: LTA000.6.1 issued on 15 December 2025;
• Exemption : GEN 012.1 issued on 15 December 2025;
• Ex gratia : PR DA000.15.5 issued on 15 December 2025;
• Ex gratia: PR LTA000.4.4 issued on 15 December 20025.

“There is time for things to be done to get these changes into legislation. Will the QRO do so? Let’s see on budget day 23 June 2026.”

• Public Ruling MRA005.1. This sets out an “Administrative Arrangement – Mineral Royalty Provisional Price Adjustments”, was issued on 19 June 2026 and effective from 18 June 2026;
• Public Ruling GEN013.1. This sets out an “Administrative Arrangement – Application of Revenue and Grants legislation for Boost to Buy and Help to Buy Participants”. But get this! It was issued on 12 June 2026 but back dates some of the arrangements to 15 December 2025 (for Boost to Buy Arrangements) and some to 5 December 2025 (for Help to Buy Arrangements)! So, not only do we have an administrative arrangement, but it gets back dated!!! We have confusion on confusion! Not only do we have a non-justiciable administrative arrangement but you don’t know it’s there until 12 June 2026 when it has retrospective effect!! What next! Where is the Parliamentary Counsel in this? Did the Parliamentary Counsel ever see this? Probably not.

You can look at these in overview;

“Retrospective laws—legislation that alters legal rights, obligations, or criminal penalties for past actions after they occurred—stand in direct tension with the rule of law. They undermine legal certainty, making it impossible for individuals to know the legal consequences of their behavior when they act.”

TTR asks: “How did Public Ruling GEN013.1 come about?” To have a public ruling issued on 12 June 2026 but stating it had retrospective effect to 5 December 2025 and 15 December 2025 is very odd.

“Laws made in secret fundamentally violate the rule of law. A cornerstone of a just legal system is that laws must be open, transparent, and publicly accessible so that citizens can understand their rights and obligations. Secret laws allow for arbitrary power and governance by fear, rather than justice.”

Goodness! No one would say that about bureaucracies in Australia. I hope.

Things get worse when one realises that there has been no proper consultation with professional organisations or other stakeholders on any of this.

“Pre-legislative consultation is critically important for drafting effective, workable, and stable laws. While it is rarely a strict legal prerequisite to validate an Act, skipping public and stakeholder consultation frequently results in unintended consequences, poor compliance, and rushed amendments later on.

Key Benefits of Legislative Consultation

• Identifies Unintended Consequences: Engaging experts, businesses, and community groups uncovers practical hurdles or legal friction before a bill is introduced to parliament. Good policy is built through consultation, not corrected by it later.
• Improves Clarity and Compliance: Testing an “exposure draft” ensures the law is user-friendly and easily understood by those bound by it, which directly boosts compliance.
• Saves Time and Public Resources: Finding flaws early via a discussion paper saves government resources by avoiding the need for emergency legislative corrections after passage.
• Builds Democratic Trust: Broad-based, transparent consultation ensures diverse perspectives are heard, giving the law greater public legitimacy and consensus.”

TTR couldn’t agree more!
TTR will remind subscribers about this again and again!
As a community, we have to do something about compliance with the Rule of Law.
And it starts in law schools and law societies.
Joining the Rule of Law Institute of Australia is a good start.