Sharon Claydon (Newcastle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I can't let this moment go by without wanting to associate myself with all of the speeches and comments made before the Australian parliament today. I think a moment that unites this parliament against intolerance and division is always worth noting, and I'm so very proud of our parliament today.

I will continue my earlier comments with regard to the bill before the House today, the Coastal Trading (Revitalising Australian Shipping) Amendment Bill 2017. I go back to some prior history, prior to this bill, back in 2015, when the Abbott government launched the first volley in its war on Australia's maritime sector through its thoroughly odious Shipping Legislation Amendment Bill 2015. That bill, which those of us on this side of the House remember being more aptly titled the 'WorkChoices on water' bill, scrapped the preference for all Australian flagged and crewed vessels and granted access to vessels of any nationality to work the Australian coastlines for a 12-month period. It also significantly prolonged for foreign vessels the exemption period from domestic wage standards. If this first bill had passed the parliament, 93 per cent of Australian seafarers would have been replaced with cheap foreign labour. Thankfully that wasn't the case. The government's own modelling revealed that more than a thousand seafarers would have been put out of work under what was then the government's preferred model. Moreover, the regulation impact statement showed that 88 per cent of the savings touted by the government were the direct result of bringing in cheap foreign labour rather than highly skilled Australian seafarers on proper wages.

This bill would effectively be the death knell for Australia's maritime industry. That's why those of us on this side of the House have been so strident in our criticisms of the bill before us. Thankfully that 'WorkChoices on water' bill was refused. The Senate threw its weight behind the Australian shippers and the Australian workers, who were unified in their rejection of that legislation. Regrettably this bill before the House today is of exactly the same intent. It has the same endgame: the decimation of Australian industry and Australian jobs. If passed, this will undermine the integrity of the entire coastal shipping regime in Australia and make it all but impossible for Australian flagged vessels to compete with their foreign flagged counterparts.

With my limited time available I will reflect on some of the critical, significant issues that Labor has with this bill today. One relates to the so-called tolerance limits. These define the acceptable range of loading days and acceptable variations in cargo or passenger volumes that apply. The second issue for Labor is the proposal to change variation processes for temporary licences. At the moment there are two ways to get a variation for a temporary licence. The first is for an authorised matter, such as a change to loading date or volume of a planned voyage, and the second is for a new matter, which authorises a completely new voyage. The bill before us today replaces both of these with just one single variation. The government tries to argue that this is merely streamlining the system, but the real impact of this change would in fact slash the time available for an Australian general licence-holder to apply, making it very difficult for operators to compete for work. This bill, like the previous bills from this government, is a full-frontal assault on the Australian shipping industry. We must oppose such bills. Those of us on this side of the House do so. I urge the government to reconsider its reckless behaviour.

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