Scott Ryan (Victoria, Liberal Party, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That these bills be now read a second time.

I seek leave to have the second reading speeches incorporated in Hansard.

Leave granted.

The speeches read as follows—

EXPORT CHARGES (IMPOSITION—GENERAL) BILL 2015

Agriculture is a vital part of the Australian economy. As a nation, we are a net exporter of agricultural produce, forecast to be worth $40 billion this financial year.

Australia's produce is of the highest standard in the world. Our enviable pest and disease status gives our farmers a unique advantage over many of their competitors.

The Department of Agriculture plays a significant role in supporting our exporting farmers and agricultural industries.

The department's important work can be seen in opening and expanding access to export markets. In the past year we have secured access for kangaroo meat to Peru and lychee and mango exports to the United States. This has opened the door for Australian growers to export some of our finest quality produce.

This behind the scenes work is critical for Australia's agricultural sector. It contributes to progressing new and expanded trade agreements, opening more markets for farmers, and bringing greater returns to the farm gate.

Access for Australian agricultural exports relies on the department's certification, inspection and auditing activities that provides assurance to other countries that their conditions of import are met. Last year alone, the department issued around 300,000 export certificates covering meat, grain, horticulture and fibre products. It also provided inspection and certification for the export of over 3.1 million live animals.

Maintaining a robust export system comes at a cost. The Australian Government has had a long standing policy of recovering these costs from those individuals and businesses that receive export certification activities.

In 2014, the Australian Government reaffirmed this policy. Agencies should set charges to recover the efficient costs of activities that they provide.

Cost recovery encourages the efficient use of government services. It also allows public scrutiny of the costs of government's activities. Cost recovery also provides the Department of Agriculture with a sustainable source of funding. It enables the department to meet increased demand for export services as Australia grows its agricultural exports.

The cost of export services must not affect our competitiveness in international markets. The Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences has recently reviewed the impact of cost recovery on agricultural exports.

This work has shown that most of Australia's key competitors also have cost recovery arrangements in place for these types of services. The impact of full cost recovery on the value of Australian exports is less than 0.8 per cent.

Government export certification costs are a small price to pay, when you consider the returns to farmers and exporters from their ability to sell products overseas.

New charging legislation is needed to recover costs under both the Export Control Act 1982 and the Australian Meat and Livestock Industry Act 1997. Existing export charging legislation is complex and allows for the recovery of costs under the export control act only.

This legislation will ensure that the costs of administering the export system can be recovered appropriately and equitably across the supply chain of all exporters of live animals and reproductive material.

Changes to improve equity are supported by exporters but are not possible under the current charging legislation.

The Export Charges (Imposition—General) Bill 2015 is the first of four bills that provide the appropriate cost recovery mechanism for export related services and activities.

Specifically, the bill will enable cost recovery of activities that provide general benefits to agricultural exporters. Particularly, the recovery of costs associated with programme management and administration, verification, risk and incident management activities.

This bill will sit alongside legislation that allows the Department of Agriculture to apply fees that recover the department's costs of those activities provided directly to people such as inspection and audit services.

The bill does not itself set the amount of the charges and will not impose any financial impacts. The charges and who is liable and exempt from paying the charges will be set in regulations.

This bill ensures the Minister for Agriculture is satisfied that the amount charged will not be more than the likely cost of delivering the activity. This will provide clients with confidence that the government will not charge more than is necessary to recover the costs of its export services.

Three companion bills are being introduced alongside this bill, the Export Charges (Imposition-Customs) Bill 2015, the Export Charges (Imposition-Excise) Bill 2015, and the Export Charges (Collection) Bill 2015.

This package of bills will ensure that appropriate cost recovery mechanisms are in place for all export certification related activities. It provides a flexible and common sense structure for applying cost recovery charges. This supports the important work undertaken by the Department of Agriculture in progressing the interests of farmers and exporters across the country

EXPORT CHARGES (IMPOSITION—CUSTOMS) BILL 2015

The Export Charges (Imposition—Customs) Bill 2015 is the second of four bills being introduced to form the export charging legislative package.

The Export Charges (Imposition—Customs) Bill 2015 will impose charges only when they are considered a duty of customs. The key provisions of the bill mirror those in the Export Charges (Imposition—General) Bill 2015 and have the same operative function and effect.

The bill does not itself set the amount of the charges and will not impose any financial impacts. The amounts recovered by the charges, and the persons liable or exempt from paying them, will be set in delegated legislation under this act.

EXPORT CHARGES (IMPOSITION—EXCISE) BILL 2015

The Export Charges (Imposition—Excise) Bill 2015 is the third of four bills being introduced to form the export charging legislative package.

The Export Charges (Imposition—Excise) Bill 2015 will impose charges only when they are considered a duty of excise. The key provisions of the bill mirror those in the Export Charges (Imposition—General) Bill 2015 and have the same operative function and effect.

The bill does not itself set the amount of the charges and will not impose any financial impacts. The amounts recovered by charges, and the persons liable or exempt from paying, them will be set in delegated legislation under this act.

EXPORT CHARGES (COLLECTION) BILL 2015

The Export Charges (Collection) Bill 2015 is the final bill being introduced to form the export charging legislative package.

The Export Charges (Collection) Bill 2015 will provide authority to collect charges imposed under the Export Charges (Imposition—General) Bill 2015, the Export Charges (Imposition–Customs) Bill 2015 and the Export Charges (Imposition—Excise) Bill 2015.

The bill provides that the regulations will determine the time allowed to pay charges.

The regulations under this bill will also outline the liability of a person's agent to pay charges on that person's behalf and establish appropriate late payment fees where charges are not paid in the time allowed.

Specifying such matters in regulations, as opposed to the act itself, provides the department with sufficient flexibility to ensure that these matters are appropriate in all circumstances.

The bill also provides the Commonwealth with mechanisms to appropriately deal with non-payment. This includes powers to refuse service or to suspend or revoke export approvals.

Unpaid charges and late payment fees will be considered as debts to the Commonwealth and may be recovered by action in a relevant court.

The bill sets out provisions for the remitting or refunding of charges or late payment fees where the Secretary believes there is sufficient reason to do so.

Together these four bills being introduced today will ensure cost recovery arrangements for activities provided in relation to exports are appropriately supported.

As mentioned earlier, sustainably funding the export services is essential for maintaining farmers' access to overseas markets, strengthening our position as an exporter of the highest quality agricultural goods and ensuring Australia has a vibrant agricultural sector now and in the future.

Debate adjourned.