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

I have been advised in relation to the questions you asked before the dinner break, which I obviously wasn't in the chamber to hear, particularly in relation to whether a review is underway on the product stewardship legislation. You also asked whether this had any implications for the future of the product stewardship model or the direction these schemes will take. In response, I can confirm that there was a review that was announced in early 2017. This was the first review of the act following its commencement in 2011, and it's our intention to conclude that review this year—that is, in 2018. The act has a review provision that requires that a broad review should occur on the fifth anniversary of the act, and I can assure you that the government has no plans or intentions of ditching a product stewardship approach. We have not prejudged the findings of that review.

The terms of reference are written quite broadly. They ask the review to look at whether the act is meeting its intention and to look at interactions with state and territory policies as well as international experience in the field of product stewardship. The terms of reference are only narrow in one regard: asking the review to consider issues around the recycling of TVs and computers, and that is an appropriate question addressing a very contemporary pressure point. The review is open to input from industry, the community, state government, federal government, territory government and local government. A consultation paper is planned to be published very shortly, and there will also be public forums as part of this process.

I should emphasise that when it comes to the future accreditation and regulation of different waste products, the government intends to continue to use a contemporary consultation approach involving discussion with experts most relevant to each class of product as different products are looked at. This is an approach we favour regardless of the shape of the stewardship scheme. Having a fixed group of people considering accreditation and regulation of all product types is a 1970s model of industry engagement that is no longer suited to the diverse world in which we live today. There are many technologies and products today that can find their way into the waste system, and we need to tap different skill sets to address each of these challenges that are before us. Under our approach there will not be less consultation; rather, it will be better targeted. We've been using that approach already and we believe that it's been working very well.

You also asked whether any other schemes have been considered. The government is considering an approach to microbeads at the moment.