John Cobb (Calare, National Party, Shadow Minister for Agriculture and Food Security) Share this | Hansard source

I move opposition amendment:

(1)   Clause 2, page 1 (line 8) to page 2 (line 9), omit the clause, substitute:

2 Commencement

     This Act commences on 1 July 2015.

It is not reasonable for the government to bring the measures in the bill into law without giving our trading partners and our domestic timber industry and timber importers the time they were promised to design and implement appropriate systems. As a result of the government's incompetence, I am forced to move an amendment. There has been a lack of consultation with our trading partners and domestic industry. This amendment will delay the commencement date of the legislation and regulation-making power to 1 July 2015. The additional time is needed to satisfy the concern of six of Australia's major timber trading partners—particularly Indonesia, which is our biggest, nearest and most important neighbour—about the subordinate regulations not being available now, at the time that the legislation is being debated, in order to allow sufficient time for scrutiny of the regulations before they take effect by either the parliament or the parties I mentioned previously. Our trading partners have not been given sufficient time to implement systems to allow traceability and achieve compliance within the regulations and legislation. Australian importers have not been given sufficient time to design and implement processes on traceability and demonstrate due diligence.

I cannot emphasise enough—particularly given recent events with Indonesia, apart from anybody else—the importance of our managing the transition envisaged in the legislation through working closely with our trading partners. The government plans to impose the consequences of this legislation pretty arrogantly on our trading partners in the same way as they imposed the live export ban on Indonesia without adequate—or, indeed, any—consultation. It is important to note that the current timber certification programs do not yet provide due diligence elements in their traceability certifications. Current systems simply cannot be put in place to meet the requirements of the legislation and regulations at this time.

See this speech in context