Hon Brooke van Velden
Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety

Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says safe harbours of deemed compliance will be created to increase business and worker certainty about what they need to do to comply with their health and safety duties.

Approved Codes of Practice (ACOPs) are practical guidelines to help people in specific sectors and industries to comply with their health and safety duties.

“Health and safety compliance is based on people doing what is ‘reasonably practicable’ to manage risks, yet I’ve heard time and time again that many people don’t know what ‘reasonably practicable’ actually looks like. There is a demand for more and better guidance,” says Ms van Velden.

“As part of my health and safety reform, I am making a change to the ACOP model to reassure people that if they comply with an ACOP, they have done enough to meet their health and safety duties.

“In the absence of clear regulations and guidance, an entire health and safety industry has developed, which comes at a cost to businesses, consumers and taxpayers. You should not have to hire a health and safety consultant just to understand whether or not you are compliant with the law.

“Public consultation feedback indicated that uncertainty about what to do has led to overcompliance and a focus on paperwork instead of actions. I want to ensure that businesses and workers know what they need to do.”

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“My health and safety reform will see a shift from a reliance on regulations to greater use of ACOPs. Regulations often remain in place that are outdated, not fit for purpose, and often overly complex. Changing regulations can often take years. Even if new regulations are made, the pace of change in industry practices and technology means that they can rapidly become out of date.

“ACOPs may be sector based but can also be used to help businesses know what ‘reasonably practicable’ means for specific issues that may occur across a range of sectors. They will likely be a useful tool for supporting innovation by responding to new and emerging industries where certainty about the risks would not yet warrant regulations.

“Rather than having WorkSafe lead this process exclusively, I am also introducing a change to allow individuals and groups, such as industry organisations, to initiate work on ACOPs to speed things up and ensure they reflect what will work in practice and what makes sense for those who deal with these risks every day.

“As the Minister of Workplace Relations and Safety I will approve each new ACOP against a set of standards to ensure they are high quality.”

These changes are part of the wider health and safety system reform and will be progressed through changes to legislation later this year.

Note:

• These legislative changes are expected to be introduced before the end of the year and passed in early 2026.

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