What is the current state of the law on retrospective nature of statutory enactments?

After an exhaustive review of many decisions pertaining to the retrospective nature of statutory enactments he came to the conclusion that the correct view was that expressed by the Lord Chancellor in Abbott v. Minister for Lands, [1895] A.C. 425 at 431, when he said: "It has been very common in the case of repealing statutes to save all rights accrued. If it were held that the effect of this was to leave it open to any one who could have taken advantage of any of the repealed enactments still to take advantage of them, the result would be far-reaching. "It may be, as Windeyer, J. observes, that the power to take advantage of an enactment may without impropriety be termed a 'right.' But the question is whether it is a 'right accrued' within the meaning of the enactment which has to be construed. "Their Lordships think not … They think that the mere right (assuming it to be properly so called) existing in the members of the community or any class of them to take advantage of an enactment, without any act done by an individual towards availing himself of that right, cannot properly be deemed a 'right accrued' within the meaning of the enactment."