|
|||
|
|||
|
 |
|
| Milestones | Details |
Source Documents (All Acts are Commonwealth unless otherwise indicated) |
| 1800 | First welfare institution established by Governor King in New South Wales. The female Orphan School (or Asylum) was mainly government funded topped up by public donations | Historical Records of NSW vol. 4 p. 658 |
| 1813 | First private welfare organisation established. The Benevolent Society of New South Wales at first distributed food and clothing to the poor | Australian Social Security Today (1980), p. 4 |
| 1881 | First welfare legislation for the poor passed (in South Australia) | Destitute Persons Act 1881 (SA) |
| 1900 | First old age pensions introduced (in NSW) | Old-age Pensions Act 1900 (NSW) no. 74 |
| 1901 | Commonwealth Government created with powers under the Constitution to provide pensions for the aged and disabled | Constitution section 51(xxiii) |
| 1906 | Royal Commission on Old-age Pensions (Chapman report) | Commonwealth Parliamentary Papers 1906, vol. III, pp. 1435-1805; 1907-8, vol. II, pp. 1251-1253 |
| 1908 | Using its constitutional powers under section 51 (xxxiii) the Commonwealth introduces pensions for the aged (from 1 July 1909) and disabled (from 15 December 1910), which were administered by The Treasury | Invalid and Old Age Pensions Act 1908 no. 17 |
| 1912 | Maternity allowance introduced from 10 October 1912 | Maternity Allowance Act 1912 no. 8 |
| 1914 | War pensions introduced from 21 December 1914 | War Pensions Act 1914 no. 34 |
| 1918 | Repatriation Department and Commission established on 8 April to administer veterans' benefits | Australian Soldiers' Repatriation Act 1917 no. 37 |
| 1920 | War Pensions Act 1914 and Australian Soldiers' Repatriation Act 1917 repealed and incorporated into the Australian Soldiers' Repatriation Act (later cited as the Repatriation Act), thereby creating a separate scheme for veterans' welfare | Australian Soldiers Repatriation Act 1920 no. 6 |
| 1922 | First unemployment benefits scheme introduced (in Queensland, from 1/3/1923), financed by contributions from workers, employers and the government | Unemployed Workers Insurance Act 1922 (Qld) no. 28 |
| 1925 | First widows' pension introduced (in NSW, from 24/2/1926) | Widows Pensions Act 1925 (NSW) no. 23 |
| 1925-1927 | Royal Commission on National Insurance (Millen report) recommends the establishment of a National Insurance Fund to provide for sickness, invalidity, maternity and superannuation benefits and of a National Health Scheme to provide medical treatment and prevent illness | Commonwealth Parliamentary Papers 1925, vol. II, pp 1269-1321; 1926-28, vol. IV, pp 1411-1486 |
| 1927 | First child endowment introduced (in NSW, from 23/7/1927) | Family Endowment Act 1927 (NSW) no. 39 |
| 1929 | Royal Commission on Child Endowment or Family Allowances (O'Halloran report) recommends against introducing a national child endowment scheme | Commonwealth Parliamentary Papers 1929, vol. II, pp 1281-1405 |
| 1935 | Service pensions introduced for returned servicemen on 6 December 1935 | Australian Soldiers' Repatriation Act 1935 no. 58 |
| 1939 | Department of Social Services created and becomes fully operative in 1941, taking over responsibility for social services from The Treasury | Commonwealth Gazette no. 25, 26 April 1939 and no. 50, 3 August 1939 (Administrative Arrangements order); no. 14, 9 April 1941 (appointment of Secretary) |
| 1941 | Child endowment introduced from 29 July | Child Endowment Act 1941 no. 8 |
| 1941-1946 | Australia. Parliament. Joint Committee on Social Security recommends consolidation of social welfare legislation, introduction of unemployment benefits, and various issues re housing and health. With various chairs, known as the Perkins report, Arnold report and Barnard report | Commonwealth Parliamentary Papers 1940-43, vol. II, pp 755-875; 1943-45, vol. II, pp 915-924; 1945-46, vol. III, pp 1181-1261 |
| 1942 | Widows' pensions introduced from 27 July. Legal Service Bureau (aka Legal Aid Bureau) established within the Attorney-General's Dept to provide legal aid to servicemen and their families |
Widows' Pension Act 1942 no. 19 National Archives Agency Notes (available through NAA Recordsearch) |
| 1944 | Unemployment benefits introduced | Unemployment and Sickness Benefits Act 1944 no. 10 |
| 1946 | An amendment to section 51 of the Constitution allows the Commonwealth
to legislate for a much wider range of welfare services. Commonwealth Employment Service established |
Constitution
section 51 (xxiiiA)
Constitution
Alteration (Social Services) Act 1946 no. 81 |
| 1947 | Social welfare provision was consolidated into one statute | Social Services Consolidation Act 1947 no.26 (later cited as Social Services Act 1947 and Social Security Act 1947) |
| 1969 | Committee of Inquiry into Health Insurance (Nimmo report) recommends government support to ensure greater coverage of the private health insurance system | Commonwealth Parliamentary Papers 1969, vol. 4, p 189 |
| 1972 | Department of Social Services abolished and replaced by the Department of Social Security which was formed from the old dept and the Health Insurance and Benefits Division of the Dept of Health | Commonwealth Gazette no. 129A, 19 December 1972 |
| 1973 | Australian Legal Aid Office (ALAO) established within the Attorney-General's Dept as a non statutory agency, replacing the Legal Service Bureau | Attorney-General's directive, 25 July 1973 |
| 1973-1974 | National Committee of Inquiry on Compensation and Rehabilitation in Australia (Woodhouse report) reports on the proposed National Rehabilitation and Compensation Scheme for all persons suffering injury or incapacity | Commonwealth Parliamentary Papers 1974, vol. 2 |
| 1974-1976 | Committee of Inquiry into Poverty in Australia (Henderson report). Main report no. 2 written by R. Sackville, is titled Law and poverty in Australia (Parliamentary paper no. 294 of 1975) | Commonwealth Parliamentary Papers 1974, vol. 14; 1975 vols. 14 & 17 |
| 1975 | Independent
Inquiry into the Repatriation System (Toose report) recommends
streamlining procedures and consolidating legislation into a single
Act and Regulations. Social Security Appeals Tribunal established |
Canberra: AGPS, 1975. ISBN 064201891X Tabled but not printed in Parliamentary papers series Ministerial Directive |
| 1976 | Task Force on Co-ordination in Welfare and Health (Bailey report)
recommends changes to welfare administration and service delivery. Repatriation Dept changes name to Dept of Veterans' Affairs |
Proposals for change in the administration and delivery of programs
and services. (Commonwealth Parliamentary Papers 1976 no.
45) Commonwealth Gazette no. S175, 5 October 1976 |
| 1977 | Commonwealth Legal Aid Commission established to provide funding for State and Territory legal aid commissions which were expected to take over the functions of the Australian Legal Aid Office | Commonwealth Legal Aid Commission Act 1977 no. 80 |
| 1981 | Commonwealth Legal Aid Council replaces the Commonwealth Legal Aid Commission | Commonwealth Legal Aid Commission Amendment Act 1981 no. 62 |
| 1983 | Australian Legal Aid Office Central Office abolished, with regional
offices continuing in NSW, NT, Vic and Tas until they established
their own Legal Aid Commissions. Advisory Committee on Repatriation Legislation Review (Keys report) recommends consolidation of repatriation legislation and related matters |
National Archives Agency Notes Commonwealth Parliamentary Papers 1983 no. 336 |
| 1985 | Veterans' Review Board established on 1st January to review decisions of the Repatriation Commission | Repatriation Legislation Amendment Act 1984 no. 97 |
| 1986 | Repatriation Act 1920 and related legislation repealed and consolidated into one Act | Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986 no. 27 |
| 1988 | Social Security Appeals Tribunal reconstituted as a statutory body | Social Security (Review of Decisions) Act 1988 no. 85 |
| 1991 | New social security act repeals the 1947 legislation | Social Security Act 1991 no.46 |
| 1998 | Department of Social Security abolished and replaced by the Dept of Family and Community Services. Commonwealth Employment Service (established 1946) replaced by Centrelink |
|
| 2004 | Department of Human Services established to coordinate Centrelink, Health Insurance Commission, Child Support Agency, Health Services Australia, Commonwealth Rehabilitation Service & Australian Hearing | Commonwealth Gazette no. S429, 27/10/2004 |
| 2006 | The Office of Indigenous Policy Coordination (OIPC) became part of the new Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaCSIA) portfolio, formerly the Department of Family and Community Services (FaCS). | Commonwealth Gazette no. S16, 27/1/2006 |
Other chronologies:
As legal aid is mainly a State and Territory responsibility, the sites listed below refer to Commonwealth or national funding and policies
Comments to: roy.jordan@aph.gov.au
Last reviewed
13 August, 2008
by the Parliamentary Library Web Manager
© Commonwealth of Australia
Parliament of Australia Web Site Privacy
Statement
Images courtesy of AUSPIC