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Legislative and Governance Forum on Food Regulation

Review of the Operations of the Ministerial Council

On 2 May 2008, the Australia and New Zealand Food Regulation Ministerial Council (Ministerial Council) finalised the first review of its operations and endorsed the implementation of seven recommendations. With the exception of Recommendation 1, all recommendations contained in the Review of Ministerial Council Operations Final Report have now been implemented.

Recommendation 1 requires the review and update of the Ministerial Council Operating Procedures to:

• ensure consistency as far as practicable with Council of Australian Governments (COAG) Guidelines and Protocols;
• clarify the mechanisms available to the Forum (convening as ANZFRMC) under the Food Standards Australia New Zealand Act 1991, the Food Regulation Agreement (FRA), and the Agreement Between the Government of Australia and the Government of New Zealand Concerning a Joint Food Standards System (the Treaty), and to cross-reference these and other key documents governing the Ministerial Council; and
• articulate the roles and responsibilities of the Forum and its Committees.

In May 2011 the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) updated its COAG Council Handbook which outlines the arrangements for the new COAG Council System and guidelines for best practice Secretariat operations. The Ministerial Council Operating Procedures are currently being reviewed to be in-line with the COAG Council Handbook.

Review of ANZFRMC Operations - Final Report 2 May 2008 (PDF 178 KB)
Review of the Operations of the ANZFRMC - Workplan (PDF 62 KB)