Bert Van Manen (Forde, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

NEN (—) (): As I rise to speak on the Special Recreational Vessels Amendment Bill 2023, I'm pleased to see that this government has continued the important work undertaken by the coalition in this space in previous years. I remember speaking on the previous iterations of this legislation, when we first introduced it in 2019 and then when it was subsequently extended in 2021. As was the case when we introduced it in its earlier forms, the coalition support its passage through the parliament.

The purpose of this bill is to extend the application of the coalition's Special Recreational Vessels Act 2019 by a further two years to 30 June 2025. The former coalition government's act allowed foreign flagged superyachts to opt in to the regulatory regime under the Coastal Trading (Revitalising Australian Shipping) Act 2012 and apply for temporary licences enabling them to offer charter services in Australia. Prior to that act, there was no mechanism by which foreign superyachts could be offered for hire or charter services in Australian waters.

A division having been called in the House of Representatives—

Sitting suspended from 17:56 to 18:08

Before I was so rudely interrupted, I was saying that, prior to this act, there was no mechanism by which foreign superyachts' services could be offered for hire or charter in Australian waters as recreational vehicles, as they were not covered by the coastal trading act. Through this coalition legislation, the owner, charterer, master or agent of the vessel is able to apply for and obtain a special recreational vessel temporary licence for 12 months, enabling the vessel to be offered for hire or charter.

Previous iterations of this legislation have allowed us to catch up with the booming business of superyachts in our neighbourhood, whether it's in Singapore, the Pacific or even down into New Zealand. It's allowing us to compete for our fair share of the charter market, and, I suspect, the areas that benefit most from this are starting at the Gold Coast, north up the Queensland coast and right around to Broome, and probably down to Perth as well. As I said, we previously extended the sunset date for this to 30 June 2023, and now the government is extending it out to 2025.

Why are superyachts so important to the Australian economy? They're vessels that provide enormous opportunities and spend enormous amounts of money. In Australia, a superyacht is defined as a vessel of 24 metres or longer; however, internationally, they are defined as luxury vessels over 30 metres long, with a master and crew, carrying 12 guests, not including staff. The operating costs of these vessels can run into the millions of dollars. They represent an important economic opportunity for Australia, especially but not solely in my home state of Queensland. It was estimated by the Queensland government that superyacht activity has the potential to contribute more than $2 billion to the economy and support more than 5,360 full-time jobs between 2021 and 2025. Regional communities, especially in coastal areas, have experienced exceptional growth in superyacht visitation and activity. The more vessels that visit Australia, and the longer they stay, the greater and broader the economic benefits.

These economic benefits are not just felt in the regions that these vessels travel to. Important support services that benefit from the superyacht sector include maintenance, food and catering, onshore accommodation, and hospitality and tourism services. This filters into my electorate of Forde, where we're seeing an increase in apprenticeships and training required to service these new vessels and new opportunities.

Through the new $11.8 million TAFE Queensland Marine Centre of Excellence located just outside my electorate of Forde, at Coomera in the electorate of Fadden, local residents have the opportunity to take advantage of significant marine industry expansion by gaining world-class skills and training. The centre includes workshops for electrical and mechanical work, fibreglass and lamination, and marine textiles and upholstery, and an outdoor boat workshop, along with welding facilities. Jointly funded by the previous coalition government and the Queensland state government, this centre provides a whole suite of new career opportunities for those living in the southern part of my electorate and on the Gold Coast, further enhancing our local manufacturing base. I know from speaking to business owners at the Gold Coast marine precinct what a boon this TAFE training centre is for them. This facility will assist in filling the skills gap that is currently required to meet 2,000 jobs over the next five years.

I've also spoken with Rivergate marina on the Brisbane River, and they were looking at a major expansion, somewhere in the order of $200 million, to upgrade their facilities with superlifts to be able to accommodate the servicing of superyachts, and they gained council approval last year. Sadly, they have advised me that that expansion will now be put on hold because of the increasing interest rates and other business costs.

In addition, the Olympics and the Paralympic Games coming down the track for Brisbane in 2032 are another tremendous opportunity to attract superyachts to Australia. I know the New Zealanders were particularly looking for superyachts to come to New Zealand for the America's Cup, but, due to COVID-19 and the restrictions applied, that didn't work out the way they wanted. But any way you look at it—from the previous discussions I've had with Rivergate marina, one of the reasons they wanted to do what they wanted to do was that they recognise that, when these yachts come in for a refit, there are the services for the refit and the skilled tradesmen that are required to do those refits, but also the crew stay onshore, so they need accommodation and they go and take advantage of our tourism facilities across the south-east of Queensland. Also, when these superyachts come in for resupply, our fruit and vegetable growers and all of those sorts of businesses benefit.

So I'm pleased to see the government introducing this legislation. It again shows the opportunities we have in this country from new areas of business that we may not have always recognised. Seeing the government build on the good work of the coalition, I'm very pleased to support this bill. It's a tremendous economic windfall that will continue to benefit communities right up and down our coast and over to the west. As I said, I support this bill.

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