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

I present the explanatory memoranda relating to the bills and move:

That these bills be now read a second time.

I seek leave to have the second reading speeches incorporated in Hansard.

Leave granted.

The speeches read as follows—

Emergency Response Fund Amendment (Disaster Ready Fund) Bill 2022

Today, I introduce the Emergency Response Fund Amendment (Disaster Ready Fund) Bill 2022.

We know that due to climate change, Australia is facing longer and more intense natural disaster seasons.

We have already seen the devastating consequences of not being prepared when unprecedented natural disasters hit, like Black Summer and the recent floods in South East Queensland and New South Wales.

The Morrison Government failed to prepare for these events. They ignored warnings in the lead up to Black Summer, and left their $4.8 billion Emergency Response Fund untouched for years.

Over three years, Scott Morrison's Emergency Response Fund didn't complete a single mitigation project or release a cent in recovery funding, while earning his Government over $800 million in interest.

In this year's Election, Labor committed to changing that, by creating the Disaster Ready Fund from the Morrison Government's failed Emergency Response Fund.

We committed to improve Australia's disaster readiness by investing up to $200 million per year on disaster resilience and mitigation projects.

The Disaster Ready Fund Bill makes good on this commitment. The Bill will transform the former Government's failed Emergency Response Fund into a dedicated ongoing source of funding for natural disaster resilience and risk reduction initiatives.

The Bill will allow the new Disaster Ready Fund to provide up to $200 million per year for natural disaster resilience and risk reduction initiatives. To ensure this level of funding remains appropriate, this limit will be reviewed at least every five years. If it is determined that the limit should be changed, the responsible Ministers will have the flexibility to do this through a disallowable legislative instrument. Prior to making a legislative instrument, the Future Fund Board of Guardians will be consulted to confirm that any proposed adjustment will not impact the Board's ability to continue to comply with its obligations under the Disaster Ready Fund Act and the Disaster Ready Fund investment mandate. The responsible Ministers will consult the Minister for Emergency Management as part of this process.

Funding for natural disaster recovery efforts will continue, most notably under the Australian Government-State Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements 2018. These arrangements provide for disaster recovery funding to be delivered through state and territory agencies to disaster affected communities. This, along with the recent appointment of Senator Tony Sheldon to the new role of Special Envoy for Disaster Recovery, demonstrates the Government's commitment to strengthening disaster recovery and emergency management.

Dedicating the Disaster Ready Fund to natural disaster resilience and risk reduction will provide a clearer distinction between the different funding sources for recovery and resilience and enhance the focus on building resilience to future natural disasters.

In saying that, the Government will honour the 2022-23 Emergency Response Fund commitments announced by the former Government, including the recovery elements. This will ensure that important resilience programs, such as the $50 million Coastal and Estuarine Risk Mitigation Program which is designed to reduce the impacts of natural disasters and coastal hazards such as storm surges and coastal inundation, can achieve their objectives. The Bill will also allow the Government to provide the $150 million announced for 2022-23 to fund recovery and post-disaster resilience measures in the Northern Rivers region of NSW.

To ensure that these commitments can be met while also promoting the long term sustainability of the Disaster Ready Fund, the Government will make new commitments to fund natural disaster resilience and risk reduction initiatives from the Fund from 1 July 2023.

On 1 September 2022, the new National Emergency Management Agency was established, merging the functions of Emergency Management Australia and the National Recovery and Resilience Agency. The Agency is administratively responsible for all disaster related functions including expenditure from the Disaster Ready Fund. To facilitate this change, the Bill will transfer responsibility for Disaster Ready Fund expenditure to the new Agency.

Combining the functions of the Emergency Management Australia and the National Recovery and Resilience Agency ensures that all natural disaster programs and funding, including under the Disaster Ready Fund can be administered effectively and efficiently to strengthen Australia's ability to prepare for, manage and recover from an increasing number and severity of natural disasters.

The Bill will also streamline arrangements for transfers from the Disaster Ready Fund Special Account and make administrative improvements to the operation of the Fund, consistent with other Australian Government investment funds.

In summary, this Bill makes important amendments to ensure that Australia is appropriately funded for natural disaster resilience and risk reduction initiatives. Investing up to $200 million per year on resilience projects was recommended by the Productivity Commission in its report into natural disaster and is supported by insurers, local governments and disaster relief bodies. The Bill provides the flexibility to change this limit, if appropriate, while promoting the long term sustainability of the Disaster Ready Fund. The amendments made by the Disaster Ready Fund Bill will improve the Australia's disaster readiness into the future.

An Albanese Government will be better prepared to respond to, recover from and prepare for natural disasters. The establishment of the Disaster Ready Fund is a crucial step in this.

Social Services and Other Legislation Amendment (Workforce Incentive) Bill 2022

As has been widely reported in public forums, and is understood by this Government, businesses across Australia are experiencing skills and labour shortages that are constraining productivity and economic growth. In response to the challenges many global economies are facing, the Albanese Labor Government is implementing a range of policies designed to address the labour market issues the country is facing to boost productivity and address underemployment. In early-September, at the Jobs and Skills Summit, our Government announced 36 immediate actions to build a bigger, better-trained and more productive workforce—to help deliver secure jobs with growing wages, boost incomes and living standards and create more opportunities for more Australians. If we are to truly unlock the full potential for our country and address our labour shortages, we need to take seriously that there are many who continue to be excluded from the labour force but want to join.

The Jobs and Skills Summit presented an enormous opportunity to examine potential solutions, and in the lead up to the Summit, the Albanese Government was continually consulting across portfolios on the ways and means that we could unlock workforce participation for those who wanted to work, or work more, but were finding barriers or penalties to their doing so. During this consultation, stakeholders and peak bodies representing older Australians advised that many age pensioners (and other pensioners over Age Pension age) are motivated to contribute to the workforce and are an underutilised group who may be willing to assist in addressing current shortages.

At present, only around 3 per cent of age pensioners earn income from employment. By providing incentives and increasing opportunities to work more without penalty, even a marginal increase in the number of older Australians in work will benefit individuals and businesses.

The measures in this Bill are purposefully designed to further strengthen the existing incentives for pensioners over Age Pension age to take up work, or increase the number of hours they work, if they wish to do so.

Through the social security income test, with its income free area and proportional withdrawal rate, combined with the Work Bonus, pensioners are better off financially if they earn additional income, rather than relying solely on income support.

Pensioners are able to earn an amount of income before their pension begins to be reduced—the income free area. For each dollar of income over the income free area, the single pension is reduced by 50 cents. For couples, each individual pension is reduced by 25 cents a fortnight for each dollar of income the couple has over the income free area.

In addition, the Work Bonus allows pensioners over Age Pension age to earn an extra $300 per fortnight from work before the income test is applied. The combination of the income free area and Work Bonus means a single age pensioner, with no other income, could earn up to $490 per fortnight from work before their payment begins to reduce.

Pensioners are able to build up any unused amount of the $300 fortnightly concession in a Work Bonus income bank. This amount can be used to exempt future earnings from the pension income test. This means a pensioner could choose to do intermittent or seasonal work, and still benefit from the Work Bonus. At present, the maximum Work Bonus income bank balance a person can accrue is capped at $7,800.

This Bill delivers on one of the key outcomes from the Jobs and Skills Summit. From commencement until 31 December 2023, age pensioners, Disability Support Pension and Carer Payment recipients over Age Pension age, as well as certain veterans' entitlement recipients over qualifying age, will have $4,000 credited to their Work Bonus income bank. The maximum Work Bonus income bank will increase accordingly, taking the maximum balance from $7,800 to $11,800 until 31 December 2023.

Eligible pensioners who are currently working and have already benefited from the full value of the Work Bonus concession will have their income bank topped up by $4,000, taking it from zero to $4,000.

Eligible pensioners who do not currently work and already have the current maximum income bank balance of $7,800, will also have their income bank topped up by $4,000. Until 31 December 2023, they will be able to have a maximum income bank balance of $11,800.

Because the $4,000 increase will be added to each eligible pensioner's Work Bonus income bank up front, every pensioner will be able have an extra $4,000 of employment income disregarded from the income test from the start of this measure.

The Bill will also give age pensioners and those receiving equivalent Department of Veterans' Affairs payments, increased flexibility to move more easily between the pension and periods of work.

Under this measure, age pensioners with employment income, whose total income exceeds their income limit, will be able to easily resume their Age Pension payments if they become payable again within 2 years, without having to do a full re-application.

This legislation, once passed will enable a streamlined, simple process to accommodate pension recipients' flexibility in their approaches and choices to work.

At the moment, after 12 weeks at a nil rate of payment, those who are working can only resume their Age Pension payments if they complete a full re-application. This Bill will allow Services Australia (Centrelink) to suspend, instead of cancel a person's Age Pension, for up to 2 years if their payment is reduced to nil and they have some employment income.

Suspending instead of cancelling the person from payment ensures that the person can benefit from an abridged re-application process if at any time during the two-year period their income is at a level where they are no longer precluded from payment.

To enable a person to be paid their correct pension entitlement, the shorter, simpler process will confirm their current circumstances, including their income and assets information. This means Age Pension payments can be resumed quickly and efficiently.

In addition, we know pensioners value their concession cards and even if they are able to work, older Australian often have additional medical needs. To support their ongoing care and cost of living, we are also extending the time a person can keep their Pensioner Concession Card (PCC) while their payments are suspended. The PCC provides access to a range of Commonwealth health concessions, including cheaper prescriptions under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.

Currently, age pensioners who earn above the income limit keep their PCC for 12 weeks. Disability support pensioners who work more than 30 hours or have income (including some from employment) above the limit retain their card for 52 weeks. This Bill will increase and align the amount of time age pensioners and disability support pensioners are able to retain their concession card to 2 years.

When a recipient of Age Pension, Disability Support Pension or certain veterans' entitlements is employed and has sufficient income that a pension is no longer payable, and their partner is also a pensioner, they will both keep their PCC for 2 years. Both will also be able to easily resume their pension payments within the two-year period if their income reduces to the point they become payable again.

We know that participating in work improves one's quality of life, with financial and non-financial benefits. For pensioners, this could mean a higher standard of living, stronger social connections, staying mentally active and keeping physically fit. Businesses also stand to benefit from the skills and experience of older Australians, particularly in the context of current labour shortages.

We value the contribution that all senior Australians have made, and continue to make, to our economic and social wellbeing, and we encourage those pensioners who still wish to contribute to the workforce, to do so.

I move:

That resumption of the debate be made an order of the day for a later hour.

Question agreed to.

Ordered that the bills be listed on the Notice Paper as separate orders of the day.