Anne Ruston (SA, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources) Share this | Hansard source

The Biological Control Amendment Bill 2015 amends the Biological Control Act 1994 to support national programs for the biological control of damaging pests and weeds. It will also provide greater certainty for stakeholders who research, deliver and benefit from biological control programs.

These agents have been used successfully in Australia in the past and will be continue to be an important tool for controlling pests and weeds and mitigating their impact on the economy, the environment and the community.

This bill specifically seeks to amend the act by clarifying the definitions of an organism to specifically include viruses and subviral agents. The definitions of an organism are a matter of an ongoing scientific debate, and the amendments will remove any ambiguity, making it clear into the future that, despite the scientific debate, the act is intended to support the declaration of viruses as agents and targets for biological control activities.

The bill will support the Australian government's $1.2 million commitment to support the rollout of a new strain of rabbit calicivirus. This is part of a long-term national program to mitigate the significant environmental impact wrought by rabbits. I commend the bill to the House.

Question agreed to.