Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

The government is introducing the Road Safety Remuneration Amendment (Protecting Owner Drivers) Billin order to ensure that owner-drivers across Australia are not left paying the price for the Road Safety Remuneration Tribunal's devastating contractor-driver minimum payments order.

The government has made it clear that its preferred option is to abolish the economically damaging road safety remuneration system and focus on real road safety solutions. To achieve this, the government has introduced the Road Safety Remuneration Repeal Bill 2016 and wants to see this bill passed urgently by the Senate.

I have outlined the reasons the government is supporting the abolition of the road safety remuneration system and urge members again to vote for its full abolition in order to protect the livelihoods of thousands of mum-and-dad owner-drivers before they are put out of business. The reason the government is also introducing this bill is so that, in the extremely undesirable event that the parliament does not support abolition, at least the recent contractor-driver minimum payments order is suspended for the rest of the year to minimise the major detrimental effects it is already having on the independent trucking industry.

The effect of this bill will be to suspend the operation of the contractor-driver minimum payments order 2016 and any subsequent orders that may be made by the Road Safety Remuneration Tribunal until 1 January 2017, and also to allow the minister to make rules dealing with transitional and other matters. This is essential for ensuring the short-term survival of owner-drivers, limiting any further impact on their families, the communities that rely on their services and the economy more broadly. As I have previously outlined, this order is creating uncertainty and costing 35,000 truck drivers and their families money. There are already many reports of financial hardship from these small businesses, and it will only get worse.

I also reiterate that this bill is not the government's preferred option. Only full abolition will address the devastating impact that the road safety remuneration system is having, and will continue to have, on thousands of hardworking owner-drivers. I commend the bill to the House.

Debate adjourned.

Craig Kelly (Hughes, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In accordance with the resolution agreed to earlier, the resumption of the debate is made an order of the day for a later hour of this day.