Warren Snowdon (Lingiari, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for External Territories) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I want to briefly comment on the previous legislation before the House: the Biological Control Amendment Bill 2016. As the then acting federal minister for the environment, I was involved in the ministerial council that authorised the initial release of the calicivirus, so I am aware of the matters which the assistant minister addressed. Good luck with that!

Labor supports the Australian government's commitment to reforms for Norfolk Island. Self-government has challenged the Norfolk Island community to provide government services to modern Australian standards. That is something which I know disappoints many, but the fact is the services that have been provided to Norfolk Island residents have not been to the standard that other Australians have been able to enjoy.

As you may well know, Mr Deputy Speaker Irons, given not only the way you wear your ties but also your deep knowledge, there have been numerous inquiries since 1979 over matters to do with Norfolk Island. These have included a royal commission, 12 parliamentary inquiries and 20 commissioned expert reports. Norfolk Island has proven difficult for the Commonwealth government over some decades, and various successive governments have sought to inform the governance arrangements on Norfolk Island to ensure that Norfolk Islanders are seen as part of the wider Australian family and are treated as part of the wider Australian family in the same way as their family members who might live in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth—or Alice Springs, for that matter—are treated. There has been a deficiency in the standard of services and particularly in terms of infrastructure, which has frustrated the development of the island.

I might comment on another tie while I am here. We have just had the pink leave and the red arrive, Mr Deputy Speaker Mitchell. I am pleased to see the new Deputy Speaker has let the pinko leave and has let the red ones in.

Whilst distracted by the change in chair, I am absolutely committed to ensuring that people who may be listening to this debate understand that the Labor Party is committed to supporting these changes to the territories legislation. When in office, Labor started the reform agenda for Norfolk Island, and indeed I was the parliamentary secretary responsible for territories in the mid-1990s. We started this exercise then—talking to the community about the need to look at the taxation arrangements that applied on the island and the need to look at the infrastructure and services that the island needed, to try and bring about an understanding in the broader community that we as a government at that point were committed to engaging in a discussion with the Norfolk Island community about what change might look like. Ultimately, and later, Labor started further reform with the passage of the Territories Law Reform Bill and initiating the roadmap for reform in 2011 with the people of Norfolk Island under the aegis of Simon Crean, who was then the minister, together with providing emergency funding assistance and investments in infrastructure to lift economic opportunities on the island.

This process has been continued by the current government, and Labor supported the Norfolk Island Legislation Amendment Act 2015. Of course, Norfolk Island means much to us. As Australians, it is a significant part of our colonial history and a very important part of Australia in the Pacific Ocean.

This Territories Legislation Amendment Bill amends the definition of Australia to include Norfolk Island as it currently includes the external territories of Christmas Island and the Cocos Islands. Commonwealth legislation in this bill to apply to Norfolk Island includes the Fair Work Act and other employment laws and the Commonwealth Electoral Act to ensure the Norfolk Island community is properly represented in this parliament. For the first time, the default position will be that laws passed by this parliament apply to Norfolk Island unless it is expressly stated in the legislation that they are not to apply.

Having had responsibility not only for Norfolk Island but also for representing the Indian Ocean territories, I have deep insight into the processes in consideration of Commonwealth legislation applying to territories generally and specifically, in this case, to Norfolk Island. That includes, in particular, what a territory community requires in consideration or consultation before Commonwealth legislation is extended to a territory.

As we know, the minister has already noted that this amendment bill is one among others that will come before this parliament regarding the application of Commonwealth legislation to Norfolk Island. As the minister said, the legislation requires complex transitional arrangements. As I pointed out earlier, the bill extends the Fair Work Act and other federal employment legislation to Norfolk Island.

The electoral arrangements are significant and are of particular interest to the member for Canberra, who will be speaking following me. Currently there is no single member of parliament formally representing and advocating for the community of Norfolk Island. This bill, for the first time, provides dedicated representation for the Norfolk Island community in the parliament by including voters in a single federal electorate, the division of Canberra. Voting will be compulsory, as it is in the rest of Australia, and the community of Norfolk Island will have Senate representation through the senators for the ACT.

Some people might ask why this is. Why is it not New South Wales? The fact is that it is a territory, and for Norfolk Island to be included in the state of New South Wales or Queensland for the purposes of Commonwealth electoral law, there would have to be a referendum in New South Wales or Queensland to allow the state to incorporate Norfolk Island as part of the state. This is true of Norfolk Island as it is true of Christmas and Cocos Islands, who are in the electorate of Lingiari in the Northern Territory—you might think that is strange—which I was first elected to in 1987. It does not seem that long ago.

Russell Matheson (Macarthur, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It looks it!

Warren Snowdon (Lingiari, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for External Territories) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I should not refer to the attendant who is here, but she is a person I have known all my life and she can appreciate that the ageing process is not kind to all of us. It has certainly been kind to her if not kind to me. She knows that I just get uglier by the day. It is something we cannot help.

In any event, as I know from that long experience with the Indian Ocean Territories, people are exercised, as they rightly should be, by the need to have representation and to have people articulating their concerns and voicing their interests in this place. Hitherto, that has not been possible. There have been people who have been able to vote in any electorate, effectively, of the Commonwealth. Many chose to vote in the seat of Canberra, but others chose to vote in the seats of Brisbane and elsewhere. So this is very important. Whatever else happens—and that includes the incorporation using New South Wales law on the island—the Commonwealth minister is ultimately responsible. It does not matter what state laws apply, even though Norfolk Islanders are not represented in state parliament, the fact is that any one of those state laws can be overridden by the federal minister. So when we talk about this it is very important that people understand that there will be a particular onus on the member for Canberra, who will have the responsibility of representing their interests broadly, including in relation to state-type powers that might exist and relate to agreements between the Commonwealth and the New South Wales government in the application of laws from time to time. That will be her responsibility, as it is mine for the Indian Ocean Territories.

We need to understand, more broadly, that when we discuss these issues they are of intense interest to the people of Norfolk Island as they are, and have been, to the people of the Indian Ocean Territories. We should be in no doubt that there has been, in the case of Norfolk Island, some division over support for these issues. But I am very confident, as I am sure the member for Canberra is, that the overwhelming majority of people on Norfolk Island understand the importance of this legislation and the measures that have been taken by the Australian government with the support of the opposition. We have been happy to work in a bipartisan manner with the federal government, and we look forward to continuing to do so with matters to do with Norfolk Island and, indeed, the Indian Ocean Territories. That does not mean we always have to agree, but it does mean that we can try and work cooperatively on important issues such as this.

The bill repeals a provision in the Norfolk Island Legislation Amendment Act 2015 which inadvertently restricted access to social security payments for New Zealand citizens living on Norfolk Island. The amendment in the bill will make sure New Zealanders on Norfolk Island receive the same level of access to social security payments as New Zealanders living on the mainland. The bill will extend child support arrangements to the Christmas Island and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, correcting another anomaly. This will align those territories with the arrangements that apply on the mainland and will commence on Norfolk Island on 1 July 2016. These are very good examples of where the citizens of Norfolk Island ought to be able to expect the same level of concern and support as the rest of the Australian community. I am pleased to be able to say now that the people of the Indian Ocean Territories can look forward to the extension of these child support arrangements.

The bill will make minor changes to the definition of Norfolk Island Regional Council to remove the requirement that the council be a body corporate. The regional council can be properly constituted under the New South Wales local government framework, as has been agreed between the Commonwealth and the New South Wales government.

The purpose of the Passenger Movement Charge Amendment (Norfolk Island) Bill 2016 is to amend the Passenger Movement Charge Act 1978 so that most departures from Norfolk Island to another country will attract the passenger movement charge, which is what you would expect. The bill recognises the special air transport arrangements in place on Norfolk Island, whereby travel to the mainland may require transit through an international country from time to time. The bill provides that a person is exempt from liability for passenger movement charges if they depart Norfolk Island for another country, or for an installation in the Joint Petroleum Development Area, with the intention of returning to another place in Australia within seven days.

Air travel can be problematic for offshore territories, and I will expand on that in a moment. It is an issue of timing and regularity of services as well as of costs. From time to time, there are issues with severe weather conditions and sudden changes in schedules or cancellations. Islanders often have to travel for medical, educational, business and other reasons that mainlanders—as those of us who live here on the mainland will be referred to—absolutely take for granted, having daily access in our communities. This is particularly important when you contemplate the need for people to travel for health reasons, which is regular and needs to be properly understood. Seven days to travel from an island to the mainland to avoid a charge if travelling through another country may appear quite adequate, but I would counsel people to think carefully about this. It may well be that we have to revisit this issue over time because seven days may not be adequate. It is something I have experienced when flights have been cancelled; if flights are irregular at best, the cancellation of one flight does not mean you get on the next flight—that flight may be full. Unless additional flights are put on, it may well be that the seven-day period will expire prior to that person landing back in Australia.

Let me just re-emphasise that Labor supports these reforms. In short, the Australian citizens on Norfolk Island deserve equal access to that of other Australians to services, whether on the mainland or the other external territories. Federal Labor remains committed to working in partnership with the people of Norfolk Island to ensure this occurs and to harness the opportunities before them.

I am sure the member for Canberra will give expression to the view that we have utmost confidence in the future of Norfolk Island, that we believe there is the potential for healthy economic development, but that requires a lot of Commonwealth expenditure. Infrastructure expenditure on the island requires that there be some give and take in the taxation arrangements. Hitherto, the islanders have not been charged Australian taxation. This will change so that, like every other Australian, they will be able to expect the Commonwealth government not only to properly represent their interests in this place but, most importantly, to understand their peculiar and particular needs—and infrastructure on Norfolk Island is a particular need. If we upgrade that infrastructure appropriately, it is very clear there is a sound basis for further economic development.

We should also reflect upon the importance of the human capital on Norfolk Island. There is absolutely no doubt about the interest or capacity of the people of Norfolk Island to achieve great things for themselves and their community and, indeed, the broader Australian community. But it is important that every Australian and every person living on Norfolk Island knows that universal health care will be provided to them. It should not be the amount of money you have in your wallet or on your credit card that says that you can have good hospital treatment or good medical treatment. They, like every other Australian, should have full access to universal health care. A similar situation should apply with respect to education. Many young people on Norfolk Island have a great desire to better themselves, and their families want that for their children, and we want to encourage that.

I conclude by saying that Norfolk Island is an interesting place. When I was there in the mid-1990s, I had dinner with a man by the name of Mr Hickey. I used to play rugby against him when he lived here in Canberra, where he owned a surveying business. Mr Hickey, who has since died, was originally from Norfolk Island. On this occasion, he had gone back to Norfolk Island and we were having dinner at a restaurant. The waiter asked, 'What would you like?' and I said, 'The steak looks fantastic. I love steak and eggs,' which I do, occasionally. The waiter said, 'We can help you with the steak, but we don't have any eggs.' Mr Hickey said, 'I can fix the eggs.' With that, he got off his chair, walked out of the restaurant and across the road to his house. He went to the chook shed and got two eggs and brought them back so that we could have steak and eggs. It is a wonderful, hospitable place. My experience of meeting people on Norfolk Island has always been one of joy in many respects—not excluding the fact that sometimes we have disagreed on particular things. But we know that they are intensely proud of who they are and where they come from, and we want to support them in whatever we do in this place.

Gai Brodtmann (Canberra, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Defence) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I commend the member for Lingiari for his speech and thank him for the support and advice he has given me since I have been the member for Canberra. As you heard in his eloquent speech, he has been working on this issue of the external territories for many decades—I know he chokes when I say that!—and he is a wealth of knowledge. I would like to take this opportunity to thank him for his commitment to the betterment of the people living in the external territories and particularly for his support on this issue since I have been the member for Canberra.

I am pleased to have the opportunity to speak on the Territories Legislation Amendment Bill 2016 and a related bill. The legislation continues the ongoing process to reform the governance of Norfolk Island, which came about following a range of reviews over many years by the member for Lingiari and many others in this House. It particularly came about following the report by the Joint Standing Committee on the National Capital and External Territories into the current situation on Norfolk Island. The committee, of which I was a member, produced the report Same country: different world—The future of Norfolk Island. The report looked at the island's prospects for economic development in the wake of falling tourism figures, in the wake of a budget deficit and in the wake of other ongoing financial concerns. As I and the member for Lingiari have mentioned, those matters have been well documented over many years through many parliamentary reviews and many consultants' reviews since Norfolk got self-government in 1979.

The committee recommended that, as soon as practicable, the Commonwealth government repeal the Norfolk Island Act 1979 and establish an interim administration to assist the transition to a local government type body, determined in line with the community's needs and aspirations—and I underscore that. Those reforms are now well underway. Last year this parliament passed legislation that extends federal taxation, social security and Medicare to Norfolk Island from 1 July this year. The legislation we are debating today continues this reform agenda by extending a broad range of Commonwealth laws to Norfolk Island. I remember talking about this in my first term, when the former minister, Simon Crean, introduced a range of Commonwealth laws. From memory, there was FOI and there were a range of other appeals, AAT type pieces of legislation. So this has been an ongoing process of reform over many years.

The Territories Legislation Amendment Bill amends the definition of Australia to include Norfolk Island, as it currently includes the external territories of Christmas Island and Cocos (Keeling) Islands. This amendment will have the effect of making the default position that all Commonwealth legislation apply to Norfolk Island, as it does to other parts of Australia. This legislation also amends the Commonwealth Electoral Act to ensure that the Norfolk Island community is properly represented in this parliament.

Norfolk Island will formally join my electorate, the electorate of Canberra, making me and the two senators from the ACT the federal representatives of the residents of Norfolk Island. The electorate of Canberra has traditionally had a connection with Norfolk Island, with the member for Canberra having sat on the Joint Standing Committee on the National Capital and External Territories, and the residents of Norfolk Island having been able to vote in the default electorate of Canberra if they have chosen to, because voting in federal elections has been optional.

Until now, as you have just heard—and because it has been optional—Norfolk Island has had a unique electoral arrangement. It has not been compulsory for residents of Norfolk to vote or to enrol to vote in federal elections and, if they did choose to enrol, they could nominate to enrol in any Australian electorate with which they had a connection—perhaps where they had lived previously or where family members live. If residents had no such connection, they could choose to enrol in one of two 'default' electorates, as the member for Lingiari has just mentioned: the electorate of Canberra, here in the ACT, or the electorate of Solomon, in the Northern Territory.

At the 2013 federal election, 90 residents of Norfolk Island voted in the electorate of Canberra, and this was the largest number of Norfolk Islanders voting in any one electorate. What this unique system has meant, in reality, is that there has been no single member of parliament who is formally tasked with representing and advocating for the community of Norfolk Island. I remember how, on one of the committee visits with the member for Solomon—and she had people from Norfolk Island vote in her electorate as well—we were meeting with members of the community but we were playing a dual advocacy role. In my view, under the current arrangements, there has been a democratic deficit.

With the changes contained in this legislation, the requirements to enrol to vote, and to vote, will apply on Norfolk, just as they do anywhere else in Australia, and Norfolk will formally join the electorate of Canberra. The significance of this particular reform cannot be underestimated. From now on, for Norfolk Islanders, voting will not only be a right and a privilege but also a responsibility. Compulsory voting is one of the defining features of the Australian democracy, and Norfolk Island should be no exception. From now on, Norfolk Island will have dedicated representatives in our federal parliament—me, as the member for Canberra, and my colleagues in the other place, the two senators for the ACT.

I know that there are many residents of Norfolk Island who have expressed concerns about these reforms. There have been various iterations of these reforms, and I note there are concerns about them. They have wondered why Norfolk should join an electorate some 2,000 kilometres away from it. They wonder how I, as the member for Canberra, along with the senators for the ACT, can represent them when we are not permanently based on the island but on the mainland. Today I want to say to these people: I understand your concerns. I really do. I appreciate that it is not going to be easy or straightforward, but I make a commitment to you, as I have made the commitment to the people of Canberra here on the mainland, that I will do my very best to represent you, to advocate for you, and to understand your concerns.

As these wide-ranging governance reforms are implemented, the interface between residents of Norfolk Island and the Commonwealth will increase. For the first time, residents will have access to Commonwealth department agencies and services, such as Medicare, Centrelink and the tax office. As their federal member, I will be here to assist Norfolk Islanders in making this transition, to ensure they get the assistance they need in making this transition, to ensure their concerns are represented and acted upon, and to ensure that residents of Norfolk Island see the benefits that I know these reforms can unlock.

As the new federal representative for Norfolk Island, I will not be starting entirely from scratch. For the last six years, I have been getting to know the people of Norfolk Island, both as a member of the Joint Standing Committee on the National Capital and External Territories and as a representative of one of the two default electorates. I have visited Norfolk more than 10 times since I have been the member for Canberra. My aim is to visit it three times a year. I have attended committee hearings and held mobile offices. I have attended business roundtables, taken part in Bounty Day celebrations, spoken at and attended a number of women's functions and Labor functions, and been to school presentations.

In particular, over the last two years, I have had regular correspondence with a great number of Norfolk Island residents about the proposed governance reforms. I will be the first to acknowledge that support on the island for these reforms is not universal—far from it. Many residents of Norfolk Island want to maintain the status quo of self-government. Many of these residents have been openly critical of me for my small role in this reform process, and they have been critical of these reforms, which they see as undemocratic.

But others have written to me to express their gratitude for these reforms and their hope that these reforms will provide them with the opportunities they have previously been denied. They are parents who see that having access to Medicare and the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme will be life-changing for their family. They are job seekers who know that access to Newstart payments or jobseeker support will mean they no longer have to rely on donated food parcels to feed the family each week.

One of the concerning trends I have noticed, having been up there more than 10 times since I was elected in 2010, was witnessing the economic deterioration for families. We all know that many people on Norfolk Island work two, three or four jobs to make ends meet and to put food on the table. What I noticed every time I went back there, from my consultations with members of the community, was that more people were accessing food bank, which is a way of getting food hampers. That just underscored the fact that people were doing it tough on the island and were reaching out for these food parcels. I also know from letters and messages from retirees and older residents that they are looking forward to having, for the first time, the security of the aged pension.

A little over a year ago, I wrote an opinion piece in which I explained why I supported governance reform. I wrote this piece before I knew exactly what the new governance model would look like and before I knew that Norfolk Island would join the electorate of Canberra, making me the federal member. I wrote:

There is no point in having self-government for self-government's sake. It is now clear to me that the current governance arrangements have met only the most basic social and economic needs of Norfolk residents. For self-government to have my support, it needs to be stable, economically responsible, democratic, sustainable and in the best interests of the people it serves. This is not the case under the current governance model on Norfolk Island. There will be democracy on Norfolk Island under a new arrangement.

We now know what this new governance arrangement will be, and I stand by my statement that it will bring democracy—genuine democracy—to Norfolk Island. I will represent all residents of Norfolk, including those who did not want these reforms and including those who have been very critical of me, to ensure that they get to have their say about how they are governed on election day.

These reforms have had bipartisan support, and I would like to thank the Minister for Territories, who is here tonight, the member for Bradfield, as well as the former minister, the member for Mayo, for engaging on this issue in a positive and bipartisan way, both here in Australia and on Norfolk. Both ministers have had an open-door policy for me when it comes to discussing these reforms and making representations on behalf of the people of Norfolk Island, and I very much look forward to that continuing.

I would like to put on the record my very great appreciation of the five members of the Norfolk Island Advisory Council, who have been overseeing the transition on the Island—and it has been very tough for them. I take my hat off to them; I salute them, because this has not been easy, and they have also been subject to criticism—a lot of support, but a lot of criticism as well. So I want to thank Melissa Ward, who was the chair of the council; Duncan Evans; Eve Semple; PJ Wilson; and Wally Beadman. As I said, their job has not been easy, but it is of vital importance for the future prosperity, security and success of Norfolk Island.

I also want to thank the current Administrator of Norfolk Island, the Honourable Gary Hardgrave, who has been through some pretty rough health issues while implementing the reform on Norfolk Island, and also former Administrator Neil Pope, as well as their staff. And I want to take this opportunity to thank Jen Pope, who was very actively engaged in the community, particularly with the food bank.

I also thank my fellow members of the Joint Standing Committee on the National Capital and External Territories, many of whom have been engaged in the issue of governance reform on Norfolk for their entire parliamentary careers. I cited the member for Lingiari but I also want to take this opportunity to again thank former senator Kate Lundy for the work she did on Norfolk Island. She was also very actively involved in reform and many of the reviews.

Reforms of this nature are never easy, never straightforward. These are significant changes, and the residents of Norfolk Island are right to be passionate about them. So I would like to thank the people of Norfolk Island who have engaged in this reform process—those who participated in the inquiry, those who have written to me, those who have led the debate on the island. While we have not always been in agreement, I know that you are all committed to bringing out the best for Norfolk Island. Norfolk Island is home to an incredibly unique history and culture, and the story of Norfolk is one that is intrinsically linked with the story of Australia. It is in the interests of all Australians to keep this history and culture alive and vibrant for centuries to come, and it is in my interests, as the future member responsible for the islanders, that they have access to opportunity, equality and fairness. That is my primary concern.

Paul Fletcher (Bradfield, Liberal Party, Minister for Territories, Local Government and Major Projects) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am very pleased to rise to deliver these summing-up remarks in the second reading debate in relation to the Territories Legislation Amendment Bill 2016 and the Passenger Movement Charge Amendment (Norfolk Island) Bill 2016. Let me thank members who have participated in this debate. I thank the member for Lingiari, who has had a long involvement with Australia's external territories, including himself serving as Minister for Territories, and who has been a strong supporter of reform on Norfolk Island. I also thank the member for Canberra, who has represented a number of constituents on Norfolk Island in this parliament, as we have just heard, and has taken a broad view of her responsibilities to be an advocate for the people of Norfolk Island. And she has worked effectively as an advocate for members of the community. Norfolk Island will become formally part of her electorate of Canberra on the commencement of the provisions of the bill that is before the House this afternoon. I also want to acknowledge the work of all members of the Joint Standing Committee on the National Capital and External Territories, particularly its chair, the member for Cowan, and I want to acknowledge the work of the senator for the ACT, Zed Seselja.

Prior to the introduction of these bills, I had the opportunity, as minister, to visit Norfolk Island, on 28 and 29 January, and that was a very worthwhile and informative visit. I had the chance to meet with members of the advisory council, under the leadership of Melissa Ward, and I thank her and all members of the council for their work. I met with the Administrator, the Honourable Gary Hardgrave; with officials of the Commonwealth government and of the administration of Norfolk Island; with the Council of Elders; and with representatives of the business community, particularly the tourism sector. I also had the opportunity to meet quite a number of Norfolk Island residents.

The package of bills before the House this afternoon is another step towards the Turnbull government meeting its commitment to provide reform in relation to Norfolk Island. Norfolk Island is the only community in Australia that has been routinely excluded from national laws, frameworks and programs. Successive governments of both political persuasions have taken this approach, under the belief that self-government, established on Norfolk Island in 1979, would be able to provide the community with appropriate federal, state and local functions. This is no longer a reasonable approach to take. The standard of government expected by Australians in 2016 is much different to that in 1979. Regulation has become more sophisticated to keep up with modern life. Government services have become more complex and difficult to deliver. A community of some 1,500 people cannot be expected to meet these challenges on its own. Norfolk Island is falling behind mainland standards, and the gap between the standard of services on Norfolk Island and those in comparable communities on the Australian mainland has been growing.

The reforms given effect to by the bills before the House this afternoon, combined with reforms set out in the legislation already passed by the parliament in 2015, will begin to address these problems. The central proposition in these bills is that Commonwealth laws should apply to Norfolk Island as they would to any other part of Australia. Where Commonwealth laws are excluded from applying to Norfolk Island, that should occur only because the Commonwealth government has made a conscious policy decision to exclude them. In some cases, this decision in respect of a particular law will have important consequences for the Norfolk Island community. For example, the Fair Work Act will be extended to provide employers and employees on Norfolk Island with the same workplace relations framework that applies throughout the rest of Australia. The national minimum wage will be phased in and the introduction of modern awards will be delayed for two years on Norfolk Island so that businesses have time to adjust. Employees will have the same protections as are currently enjoyed by their counterparts on the mainland. In other cases, the changes will be minor. For example, the territories bill will extend the Gene Technology Act 2000 and the jurisdiction of the Gene Technology Regulator to Norfolk Island. Though this may seem to be a minor change, there is simply no good reason to exclude Norfolk Island residents from the operation of that legislative framework.

Importantly, in addition to applying Commonwealth laws, the territories bill will ensure the Norfolk Island community is properly represented in the Commonwealth parliament, giving Australians living on Norfolk Island a say in how the laws which affect them are made. Enrolment and voting in federal elections will be compulsory, as it is for other Australians. Norfolk Islanders will vote in the division of Canberra and will be represented by ACT senators. The ultimate outcome of these changes is that Australian citizens on Norfolk Island will have the same rights and responsibilities as those in other parts of Australia. The standard of federal services delivered on Norfolk Island will improve and Commonwealth laws will provide an environment which encourages private investment, trade with the mainland and opportunities for economic growth.

The Australian government's goal continues to be ensuring a strong future for Norfolk Island—a future that provides opportunities for jobs and growth, supports vulnerable residents and fosters a strong and vibrant community. The bills before the House this afternoon, if passed, will represent another step in that direction.

Question agreed to.

Bill read a second time.

Message from the Governor-General recommending appropriation announced.