Carol Brown (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Tourism) Share this | Hansard source

When considering this legislation and Labor's amendments, can I urge members of the crossbench to also consider the private senator's bill recently introduced by Senator Keneally. It is Labor's strong view that risks to our transport security must be dealt with as a complete set of reforms to address often complex issues. If this legislation is passed in isolation, foreign workers will still be able to freely access our ports and other transport infrastructure on very short notice, while hardworking Australians will face even more checks and delays before they can carry out their vital work.

Senator Keneally's bill would replace the current maritime crew visa, which is usually issued to applicants on 24 to 48 hours notice, with two new categories. There would be a new international seafarers transit visa, which would only be issued to crew entering Australia on a continuing international voyage. The second new category would apply to foreign seafarers who work off our coastline, often for years, on flag-of-convenience ships. This proposed category would mandate that these seafarers are subject to the same kind of background checking that Australian workers are subject to when applying for an MSIC.

These vital reforms will truly address some of the loopholes in our transport security regime. But as good as Senator Keneally's private senator's bill is, it is not likely to come into effect—because of this government's opposition—unless the crossbench support Labor's amendments. That is why Labor has put forward an amendment to this bill that would delay the commencement of the Transport Security Amendment (Serious Crime) Bill 2020 until the passage of Senator Keneally's Migration Amendment (New Maritime Crew Visas) Bill 2020 is through both the Senate and the House of Representatives. If colleagues are serious about closing some of the loopholes in the transport sector, I urge them to not only support Senator Keneally's bill but also support Labor's amendments that would ensure its passage.

We are also seeking to amend this legislation to ensure that the scope of crimes covered under this bill are appropriately targeted and that hardworking Australians won't be denied the right to work based on rumour, innuendo, belief or suspicion. Of course, those who pose a credible threat should be denied access to the operations of our aviation and maritime infrastructure but, as is the view of fair-minded Australians, when government agencies seek to deny a worker an ASIC or MSIC, that decision should be able to be appealed. But there is no such right to appeal in this legislation.

During its inquiry into this bill, the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee was told that the generally understood definition of 'serious crime' does not apply in the case of this legislation. As the bill currently stands, we are left in a position where we know what definition of serious crime doesn't apply but we are yet to be told by the government what definition of serious crime does apply. This is truly staggering when you consider the fact that the government has been seeking to pass this legislation in one form or another since 2013. That is why Labor will also be moving an amendment to insert a new definition. The workers in Australia applying for these cards have a right to know the definition of serious crime that will be applied to their application that has been duly considered and voted on by parliament. To leave important features of this legislation which will directly impact on the ability of tens of thousands of Australian workers to maintain their employment to the whim of delegated legislation is truly appalling.

Too often these days the government come in here with incomplete legislation and then seek to tidy up their mess through the promulgation of regulations. Surely, simple matters like the definition of serious crime should have been well and truly dealt with in the intervening seven to eight years. In every terrorist related act that impacts on the transport sector, you will always find transport workers included on the list of dead and injured. That is why transport workers and their unions understand better than most the need to uphold the integrity of the laws and the application of those laws to protect our important national infrastructure and the workforce. For years now, these workers and their unions have been seeking to get the government to act on the real threats to our national security by foreign maritime workers, who are issued visas without any of the background or other checks that Australian workers are subject to. I ask senators to vote for the Labor amendments and I commend the Labor amendments to the Senate.