Greg Combet (Charlton, Australian Labor Party, Minister Assisting the Minister for Climate Change) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That the amendments be agreed to.

These minor amendments deal with administrative matters. They clarify that the Office of the Renewable Energy Regulator, which administers the current Mandatory Renewable Energy Target Scheme and will administer the expanded RET scheme, will be responsible for administration of partial exemptions in relation to emissions-intensive trade-exposed activities under the RET scheme. When the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme comes into force, the Office of the Renewable Energy Regulator will be absorbed into the Australian Climate Change Regulatory Authority, which will administer these partial exemptions.

The proposed amendments simply replace several references made in the Renewable Energy (Electricity) Amendment Bill 2009 to the ‘Office of the Renewable Energy Regulator’ to the ‘Australian Climate Change Regulatory Authority’, as the authority will only come into existence once the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme legislation passes. Consequential amendments in the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme legislation will give effect to the requisite change of reference from ‘regulator’ to ‘authority’ in the RET legislation at the appropriate time. These provisions are to commence on the day the bill receives royal assent. As this minor amendment deals with a purely administrative matter required to support the agreement reached in the Senate, I understand that those opposite will support it. I commend the amendments to the House.

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