Fiona Nash (NSW, National Party, Assistant Minister for Health) Share this | Hansard source

I am very pleased today to have the opportunity to sum up the second reading debate on the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Amendment Bill 2015. As we have discussed, this bill amends the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Act 1998 to ensure that Australia's regulation of radiation activities remains international best practice. I thank senators for their contribution to this bill, and I note the support from the Australian Labor Party, and thank Senator McLucas for her comments, and also those of the Australian Greens through Senator Ludlam.

Radiation protection and nuclear safety are constantly evolving. International approaches and industry practice have evolved since 1998 when the act was first introduced, and Australia needs to remain at the forefront of these changes. Australia is fortunate to have a strong regulator in the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency, or ARPNSA as it is more commonly known. The regulatory scheme continues to provide Australians with appropriate protections; however, as science and technology changes, the legislation and regulation needs to remain contemporary. To this end, this bill increases capacity for improved risk management and provides ARPANSA with greater powers to monitor compliance.

The amendments also support the CEO of ARPANSA to better respond in the unlikely event of an emergency. The bill enables the CEO to issue directions to licence holders to minimise any risk to people and the environment in unforeseen circumstances. All action taken by ARPANSA in response to noncompliance or to emergencies will continue to be reported quarterly and annually to the parliament. This will also be published on the ARPANSA website. This ensures that there is absolute accountability and transparency about the radiation activities being undertaken by Commonwealth agencies and about the actions taken by the regulator. Consistent with this government's commitments, the changes do not have any financial impact, nor do they increase any compliance burden for individuals, business or community organisations. The amendments simply update and improve the legislation.

I thank Senators for their contributions to debate on this bill and note the questions foreshadowed by Senator Ludlam to be dealt with in the committee stage, and I thank the Senate Community Affairs Legislation Committee for their consideration of this legislation. I would also like to thank ARPANSA and the Department of Health for their work on preparing this legislation.

Question agreed to.

Bill read a second time.