27Power of Treasurer to meet current and accruing requirements

27 Power of Treasurer to meet current and accruing requirements

(1)  The Treasurer may, in any financial year before the passing of an Appropriation Act for that year, issue and apply in accordance with this section the amounts that may be necessary to meet the current and accruing requirements for that year.

(2)  The power of the Treasurer under subsection (1) in respect of a financial year –

(a) ceases on the passing of an Appropriation Act for or in respect of that financial year; and

(b) does not in any event extend beyond the first 2 months of that financial year.

(3)  On the passing of an Appropriation Act, all money issued and applied under this section is to be regarded and treated for all purposes as having been paid out of the supply granted by that Act under the appropriate items.

(4)  A payment under this section –

(a) is to be at the rates equivalent to the rates of payment in the immediately preceding financial year in respect of the appropriate item to which the payment relates; and

(b) is not in the whole to exceed the amount that would be equivalent to the expenditure of an amount of 20% of the appropriation of the immediately preceding financial year in respect of each Agency.

(5)  If an appropriation includes an Agency that was not included in the Appropriation Act for the last preceding financial year, a payment authorised by this section is not to exceed an amount of 20% of the estimated appropriation for that Agency for the current financial year.

(6)  If –

(a) the estimates of expenditure for a financial year have been submitted to Parliament; and

(b) the rate of expenditure in those estimates is, in any case, lower for any Agency than the rate of expenditure authorised in the Appropriation Act for the last preceding financial year –

a payment authorised by this section is not to exceed the lower rate.