Concetta Fierravanti-Wells (NSW, Liberal Party, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Social Services) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to oppose the disallowance motion relating to the Family Law (Fees) Amendment (2015 Measures No. 1). In June the Senate voted to disallow family law fee changes which were intended to commence on 1 July. In doing so, those senators who supported the disallowance acted with gross irresponsibility, and if they do so again today they will be compounding their irresponsibility. The Family Court and the Federal Circuit Court are projecting substantial losses over the forward estimates. The package of measures is necessary to ensure the courts are sustainable by the fourth year of the forward estimates.

The government's budget measure was part of a package to ensure that the courts are in a strong financial position to carry out their fundamental role as the judicial arm of the Commonwealth while ensuring the efficient and effective delivery of their services. The government has considered in their totality all the issues related to court funding. The budget includes measures critical to ensuring that the courts are placed on a sustainable funding footing and meet the streamlining savings election commitment, Senator Lazarus. This includes injecting into the courts an additional $22.5 million over four years to enhance their capacity to provide services in areas such as family law, with $16.6 million to be injected into the Family Court and Federal Circuit Court and $5.9 million into the Federal Court. Injection into each court will remain as per the budget papers for 2015-16, but in the following years it will be adjusted as necessary when the courts become a single administrative body from 1 July 2016.

It also includes $30 million in funding for critical maintenance works for court buildings. This is very important. It also includes merging the back office functions of the Federal Court, the Family Court and the Federal Circuit Court to ensure the efficient and effective delivery of shared services. Implementation will commence early in 2015-16 to facilitate formal commencement of the merged entity on 1 July 2016, and it will also include changes to court fees to commence in July 2014.

It is the last of these that Labor, the Greens and the crossbench are seeking to disallow. Of course, without the fee changes there will be almost nothing left for injection back into the courts. This action threatens to undermine the revenue base that is critical to putting the federal courts on a sustainable funding footing. The hypocrisy on the Labor side is amazing. When last in government, those opposite used substantial court fee increases to generate funds for the civil justice system, but with a much lower proportion—