Stephen Bates (Brisbane, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I want to thank the member for Mayo for her work on this bill and the amendment she has circulated. We recognise and agree with the broad concern she's raised about the level of delegated legislation in this bill. It certainly isn't our preference, and we would encourage the government to address those concerns in a way that addresses the issues highlighted through the Senate committee inquiry process. I understand a number of crossbench MPs and senators have raised those issues with the minister, and I look forward to the outcome of those discussions.

We have consulted with a number of stakeholders on the amendment circulated by the member for Mayo in the time that was available. As I said, we support the intent to ensure greater accountability in legislation and greater protection for consumers. Given the policy development underway by government, the advice we've received from a number of stakeholder groups is they support the existing process. So we won't be supporting this amendment in the House. However, we remain open to improvements to the bill and will continue to consult with stakeholders on how we can ensure this legislation is as transparent and strong as possible.

See this speech in context