Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Agriculture) Share this | Hansard source

No. Just in response to Senator Di Natale's question, the government believes that this approach is, as I said before—

The CHAIRMAN: If those senators who do not intend to participate in the debate would either take their seats or leave the chamber, that would assist us in conducting our business. Minister.

Thank you, Chair. I understand Senator DiNatale has had an interest in this for a period of time. As I have said, the government believes that having this broad definition is the best way of staying ahead of an ever-changing drug market. I would just reinforce a couple of the points that I made a moment ago. The only substances caught by this offence are those that are going to be used or supplied as alternatives to illicit drugs. That is an important point. The bill deliberately uses a broad definition of 'psychoactive effect' to capture these substances but, importantly, it includes 12 broad categories of exemptions. The ban will clearly not apply to any substance with a legitimate use that is imported in accordance with relevant regulatory schemes. Substances without a listed legitimate use are those that are most likely to be imported for use as alternatives to illicit drugs. So the definition of psychoactive substance is deliberately very broad, but it has to be read in the context of the rest of the legislation and, as I have indicated, there are 12 broad categories of exemptions that form part of that overall context for the rest of the legislation.

I know you are looking for something definitive, Senator DiNatale, but the government has taken an approach—as I have indicated to you now on a couple of occasions—that it is about being able to stay ahead of a rapidly changing market. Governments are often criticised for not being able to keep up with changes in the way that the community works, and in this circumstance we have made the deliberate attempt to put in place a provision that allows us to stay ahead of an ever-changing drug market. We understand the damage that that can cause in the broader community. We are looking at the opportunity to develop and implement more specific controls, but we are in a situation where we need to act on this as quickly as possible.