Dan Tehan (Wannon, Liberal Party, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Cyber Security) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

The Defence Legislation Amendment Bill 2017 will make some small but significant changes to Defence's practice and operations. Some stem from recommendations to government and some deliver on election commitments. These are covered in the four schedules to this bill.

The first Schedule amends the Defence Act 1903 to apply common sense to Defence prohibited substance testing.

It will enable a policy framework to broaden and expand the conditions under which a prohibited substance positive test result must be disregarded, including in circumstances relating to appropriate usage of over the counter medication or substances administered or dispensed by authorised persons.

Under the current arrangements, a positive test result may be disallowed under the direction or recommendation of a legally qualified medical practitioner.

The bill will allow a positive test to be disregarded under certain circumstances specified in the relevant Defence Instruction issued by the Secretary and Chief of the Defence Force jointly under Section 11 of the Defence Act 1903.

This broadening of the circumstances is necessary to ensure that over the counter medication and other legitimate circumstances can be considered where a positive test result is returned. For example, it will mean that Defence will be able to ignore instances where a positive test result has been caused by a dose of generic cold and flu medication rather than something more significant.

The bill will also simplify the termination provisions to align with the new Defence Regulation 2016 which prescribes procedural fairness, notice to show cause and warning provisions in relation to adverse administrative decisions.

Schedule 2 amends the Defence Reserve Service (Protection) Act 2001 to put in place greater protections for Reserve members. This is a Coalition election commitment and I am happy to be bringing these measures forward in this bill.

The Defence Reserve Service Protection Act provides for the protection of Reserve members in their employment and education, to facilitate their return to civilian life after rendering defence service, and for related purposes. It sets out entitlements and prohibitions that apply in relation to people who at any time serve as members of the Reserves. The act mitigates some of the employment and financial disadvantages Reserve members may face when rendering defence service and facilitates their availability to undertake defence service, and will enhance Defence capability.

It is the view of the government that no one should be disadvantaged by choosing to wear a reserve uniform.

A review of the act in 2008 (the Protection Review) concluded that, overall, the act was working well and achieving its objectives. However, the Protection Review recommended a number of enhancements to the act. The amendments in Schedule 2 implement many of these recommendations.

In particular the bill will address the application of the employment, partnership and education protections in Parts 5, 6 and 7 of the act to extend to all types of Reserve service. Previously, voluntary continuous full time service (which is the type of Reserve service that is typically used when a Reserve member deploys on operations) was only protected if the CDF (or delegate) had requested the member to undertake the service on that basis. This requirement resulted in confusion for Reservists and their employers as to whether the protections applied in any given case. This will no longer be an issue, as all defence service will be protected from now on.

The bill will also extend the application of the financial liability and bankruptcy protections in Parts 8 and 9 of the act to continuous full time service that is operational service. Previously, the service was only protected if it was continuous full time service following a call-out under the Defence Act 1903.

A civil penalty regime is also established to supplement the criminal offence provisions throughout the act, including provisions dealing with discrimination in employment and education.

The provisions in Part 4 of the act dealing with discrimination are enhanced to improve the clarity and consistency of these provisions, and to deal with harassment of Reserve members because of their defence service.

The employment protections in Part 5 of the act are clarified, by stating when the protected period begins and ends, and by replacing the concept of suspending an employment contract with an entitlement to be absent from employment while absent on defence service.

The education protections in Part 7 of the act are amended to provide a general obligation on education institutions to make reasonable adjustments to accommodate a member's defence service.

Schedule 3 will implement a recommendation of the 2015 First Principles Review of Defence. It will amend the Intelligence Services Act 2001 (ISA), the Navigation Act 2012 and the Telecommunications Act 1997 in order to transfer the hydrographic, meteorological and oceanographic functions from the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) to the Australia Geospatial Organisation (AGO). In conjunction, the Australian Hydrographic Office (AHO) will be transferred out of the RAN and into AGO.

This recommendation will be met in order to have all geospatial related information functions consolidated within the AGO. The transfer of these functions is expected to realise synergies in the exploitation of imagery and other data to produce intelligence and non-intelligence geospatial related information in support of Australia's defence interests and other national objectives.

The amendments to the ISA will permit AGO to provide its non-intelligence products and related assistance to an expanded range of entities in accordance with Australia's legal obligations and national interests. Among other things, this will ensure that AGO can, through the AHO, continue to effectively and efficiently deliver high quality hydrographic, meteorological and oceanographic services to the maritime community.

The minor consequential amendments to the Navigation Act 2012 and the Telecommunications Act 1997 are needed to ensure that the terminology used in those acts aligns with new Defence organisational arrangements following transfer of those functions.

Schedule 4 will amend the Australian Defence Force (ADF) Cover Act 2015 to align a small number of provisions in this new superannuation act with other military superannuation schemes and provide clarity in definitions.

The bill will ensure that members who resign from the ADF and later find that they could have been medically discharged will be able to apply to the Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation (CSC) to have their mode of discharge circumstances reassessed.

The bill will also create a more contemporary definition to allow a child of a deceased member or invalid to become eligible at a later date, where the child currently is found ineligible at the time of the member's or invalid's death.

An example of how this could occur would be where a child of the member or invalid is over 18 and ceases full-time study to become the carer or to undertake a gap year prior to the member or invalid's death, subsequently resuming full-time study after the member or invalid's death while still under the age of 25.

The bill will also remove the requirement for a child of a deceased member to be "wholly or substantially dependent" on the member or an eligible spouse. The amendment ensures that all eligible children of a deceased member are recognised regardless of where they reside and does not unintentionally exclude children who would otherwise be found eligible if there was no eligible spouse.

CSC will determine who to pay a proportion of the total pension where there are multiple spouses and eligible children.

As mentioned, this bill moves to make some small but significant changes to Defence legislation.

They will be significant to the operations of Defence, providing streamlining to practices and common sense to regulation.

They will be significant to the members of the Defence Reserves, who will receive greater protection.

They will be significant to family members of the ADF who will now benefit from the changes to superannuation.

I commend the bill to the House.

Debate adjourned.