David Littleproud (Maranoa, National Party, Shadow Minister for Agriculture) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the Sydney Airport Demand Management Amendment Bill 2024 on behalf of the opposition. In opening, I want to state that the coalition wants to see a more affordable, reliable and competitive aviation sector for all Australians who rely on our aviation sector, the travelling public, small businesses and exporters.

The aviation sector plays an integral role in connecting families with loved ones, moving for work, education and health care, and movement of freight. The coalition is the only party consistently standing up for Australian travellers, who have long suffered from high prices, delays and cancellations under the Albanese government. We sought to examine the reasons why the government blocked Qatar Airways from adding additional international services last year at a time of high demand and high prices, noting aviation experts believed the additional flights would have lowered prices on international fares by up to 30 per cent. We prosecuted the government in the Senate over the ministerial decision on behalf of Australians travelling who rightfully questioned why the government was not in favour of lower airfares, particularly after it was revealed the department recommended the minister approve a negotiating mandate for the requested additional flights.

The coalition has also shone a light on high rates of flight cancellation and delays during the post-COVID period, which has undermined public confidence in the reliability of the aviation sector. Under this government, the cost of airfares has increased by 53.1 per cent, according to the department. The Sydney Airport Demand Management Amendment Bill 2024 is a response to work commenced under the former coalition government to enhance the productivity and competitiveness of Sydney Airport. The bill's provisions, while moderate, still represent the most significant proposed changes to Sydney Airport's demand management system in 30 years. The bill, therefore, deserves a considered review by parliament.

Sydney Airport is Australia's premier aviation gateway. The airport's operations are undertaken within restrictions of a curfew between 11 pm and 6 am, as well as a cap on aircraft movements of no greater than 1,360 movements per day, represented by a cap of 80 movements per hour. The demand management scheme provides for an ordered system of allocating access to Sydney Airport by airlines commonly referred to as 'airline slots'. Slots are granted to airlines and govern the timing of allocated flights. For some years, there have been concerns airlines may be using the slot system to restrict access to and competition at Sydney Airport. There have also long been productivity concerns at Sydney airport, including the flow-on impact on the entire national aviation network of storms and severe weather events that result in the temporary closure of Sydney airport airspace, the grounding and cancellation of flights, and the diversion of flights already en route to Sydney to other locations, including Canberra, Melbourne and Brisbane.

The former coalition government commissioned former Productivity Commission chairman Peter Harris AO to undertake a review of the Sydney airport demand management system, commonly known as the Harris review. The report of the review was presented to the government in February 2021 and made 17 recommendations to enhance airport operations by amending the demand management scheme. The coalition established a task group of Sydney airport stakeholders to develop practical recommendations to give effect to the Harris review recommendations. This work was undertaken despite the significant impacts on our aviation industry of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Albanese government inherited this work upon its election in May 2022. Over the past two years, the coalition has been encouraging the government to act on this important body of work. It has been argued that these reforms did not need to wait for the Albanese government to go through its aviation green and white paper process before making a decision on the future management of flights and airline slots at Sydney airport. The bill is the Albanese government's attempt to provide a basic response to the Harris report, which has sat on Minister King's desk for more than two years.

In February this year the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government issued a media statement promising to address the findings of the Harris review of the Sydney airport demand management scheme, but there were no specifics. Since then we have seen not one but two airlines enter administration. Both airlines delivered regional services, and their very presence lowered prices. Regional travellers now face higher airfares and fewer services as a result. We know from the government's own Treasury modelling that the more carriers that service a route the lower the airfares. Until it entered administration, Regional Express, or Rex, provided additional competition on intercity routes. The government's own data shows that economy airfares have increased by 16.3 per cent in the three months since Rex exited capital city routes. Best discount airfares have increased by 21.9 per cent over the same period. This is data from the Bureau of Infrastructure and Transport Research Economics within the minister's own department.

The coalition welcomes the government finally presenting legislation to the parliament, but we have some concerns which we want to examine via the Senate committee inquiry process. It's concerning that the government has waited so late in the parliamentary calendar to bring this measure forward and that the government has sought to limit scrutiny on the bill. As stated, the bill is modest in its aspirations but is underpinned by regulations. The regulations have not yet been drafted and, therefore, the government's full legislative intent is unable to be determined. It would be hoped that the government could provide greater clarity regarding the content of the proposed regulations. The bill seeks to introduce a new recovery framework which is intended to limit the delays, cancellations and redirection of flights that occur during significant weather events in the Sydney airport airspace. Under the framework, there would be capacity to operate an additional five flights above the hourly cap for a limited two-hour recovery period following a declared significant event.

The bill also seeks to improve the governance of the Slot Compliance Committee and harmonise the rules underpinning the demand management scheme with the internationally recognised World Airport Slot Guidelines. It provides the minister with the ability to determine the demand management scheme and provide directions to the slot manager. While the detail will be covered in the proposed regulations, it's critical that the improvements to the Sydney airport demand management scheme are effective at addressing longstanding concerns about slot allocation and compliance at Sydney airport to ensure that good performance by airlines is rewarded, that anticompetitive behaviour is prevented and that new entrants are able to get access on fair terms to provide the competition that Australian travellers and businesses deserve and desire. It's also claimed by the government that the regulations will improve access to Sydney airport by regional services.

It's noted that the government has not consulted the community on the provisions in this bill nor on the regulations, which have not yet been drafted. Labor sought to prevent the bill being referred to a Senate committee and, when pushed to, restricted the time available to conduct the inquiry. The outcome of this obstruction by the government is that only one public hearing will be held and that that will occur in Canberra, not in Sydney where it should have been held. This is disappointing because the introduction of successful reforms should be underpinned by effective community consultation. Sydney airport is a critical hub for our national and international trade and connectivity. We will look to the Senate inquiry to see to what extent the bill addresses the productivity and competition challenges which the recommendations of the Harris review sought to resolve.

The Albanese government's failure to respond to the Harris review in a timely manner has meant more Australians have endured increased rates of cancellations and delays, higher airfares and reduced aviation network reliability for longer than they should have. We know Australians want an aviation industry that simply gets the basics right, and for too long it hasn't. They want planes to take off and land on time, they want their bags to actually arrive at the same place and at the same time that they do and they want to actually be able to afford a ticket.

The Sydney Airport Demand Management Act 1997 was enacted amidst the aviation realities of the 20th century and in response to community concerns. However, the scheme has gradually become less fit for purpose in managing the complex ecosystem of modern air transport demands and competition. The management of slots at a major hub like Sydney airport is a critical factor in determining the competitive landscape of the entire Australian aviation industry.

The coalition has spoken to a large number of stakeholders about the legislation, and I thank them for providing their feedback to the opposition. Stakeholders consulted included airlines, airports, travel agents and other travel industry representatives. We've also heard the evidence of competition experts through the Commonwealth bilateral air services agreements Senate inquiry last year. The coalition wants to see a more reliable and competitive aviation sector. As stated earlier, the coalition has concerns and issues in relation to the government's bill, which we believe should be raised and examined through the Senate inquiry process. This inquiry process will inform our final position on the government's bill.

Debate adjourned.