21 Secondary Legislation
Tracey Thomas and Theresa Buller
Parliament makes laws by enacting primary legislation (Acts). It is often not possible for an Act to include all the details necessary for it to have its intended effect. For this reason, Parliament will often include in an Act a provision that delegates to another person or body, often part of the Executive, the power to prescribe these necessary details as secondary legislation. The Act that delegates this law-making power is known as the empowering Act. The specific provision containing the power is the empowering provision. Secondary legislation must be published in accordance with Part 3 of the Legislation Act 2019.
Parliament has traditionally delegated its legislation-making power by authorising the Governor-General (on the advice of the Executive Council) to make secondary legislation. The Governor-General presides at meetings of the Executive Council where Ministers of the Crown, who are also Executive Council members, present secondary legislation for signature. Once promulgated, secondary legislation is notified in the New Zealand Gazette. All secondary legislation is required to be tabled in Parliament and is subject to post-promulgation scrutiny by the Regulations Review Committee.
Types of Secondary Legislation
There are different types of secondary legislation, including delegated legislation, subordinate legislation, regulations, proclamations, rules, bylaws, codes and Orders in Council.
Revoked secondary legislation is no longer in force or has expired or is now disallowed.
Structure of Secondary Legislation
Secondary legislation includes a number in the top right corner, which is made up of the year and the consecutive number of secondary legislation; for example, 2025/17 is the 17th secondary legislation published in the year 2025.
When secondary legislation is published, there is an explanatory note or statement of reasons at the end of the text.
Within secondary legislation each idea or topic is numbered and is called a clause or, depending on the type of secondary legislation, each basic unit may be called a rule or regulation.
Secondary legislation includes a commencement clause, which indicates the date it comes into force.
Secondary Legislation Terminology
Secondary legislation is sometimes referred to as delegated legislation because, even though it is authorised by an Act of Parliament, it is made by a body outside Parliament.
Historically, secondary legislation was referred to as statutory regulations and legislative instruments. It is currently known as secondary legislation.
Secondary legislation has also been referred to more broadly as subsidiary legislation, subordinate legislation, delegated legislation and regulations.
The New Zealand Legislation website includes an overview of secondary legislation. For more in-depth authoritative information, refer to the Secondary Legislation chapter inParliamentary Practice in New Zealand.[1]
- David Wilson and David Bagnall (eds) McGee Parliamentary Practice in New Zealand (5th ed, Clerk of the House of Representatives, Wellington, 2023) at ch 41. ↵
