Lidia Thorpe (Victoria, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

by leave—I move amendments (1) and (2) in my name on sheet 2703:

(1)—Schedule 1, page 3 (after line 5), after item 1, insert:

1A Section 3

Insert:

cash service obligations means obligations under section 28AA.

(2)—Schedule 1, page 3 (after line 10), after item 3, insert:

3A At the end of section 25

Add:

; (d) its cash service obligations under section 28AA.

3B After section 28

Insert:

28AA Cash service obligations

(1) If Australia Post:

(a) supplies goods or services in the course of:

(i) supplying postal services under section 14; or

(ii) carrying on any business or activity under section 15; or

(iii) carrying on any incidental business or activity under section 16; and

(b) offers to accept a payment for the supply in person at an office of Australia Post in Australia;

then Australia Post must offer to accept, and accept, the payment in cash.

(2) Australia Post must offer an in-person cash withdrawal service at each office of Australia Post in Australia to the extent that the service is:

(a) a business or activity under section 15; or

(b) an incidental business or activity under section 16.

(3) Subsection (1) does not apply to a payment in cash to the extent that:

(a) the payment exceeds the higher of the following:

(i) $10,000;

(ii) another amount prescribed by the regulations; or

(b) offering to accept the payment would pose a security risk to an employee of Australia Post; or

(c) offering to accept the payment would be contrary to another law of the Commonwealth or a law of a State or Territory; or

(d) offering to accept the payment would be contrary to current health advice issued by an official or agency of the Commonwealth or of the State or Territory in which the offer is made; or

(e) access to cash in the form of change is needed for the purposes of the payment, but that access is not readily available.

(4) Subsection (2) does not apply to a cash withdrawal to the extent that:

(a) the withdrawal exceeds the higher of the following:

(i) $10,000;

(ii) another amount prescribed by the regulations; or

(b) offering to provide the withdrawal would pose a security risk to an employee of Australia Post; or

(c) offering to provide the withdrawal would be contrary to another law of the Commonwealth or a law of a State or Territory; or

(d) offering to provide the withdrawal would be contrary to current health advice issued by an official or agency of the Commonwealth or of the State or Territory in which the offer is made; or

(e) access to cash is needed for the purposes of the withdrawal, but that access is not readily available.

These amendments are about ensuring access, particularly for regional communities, to banking in post offices. When I lived in regional Victoria, my local post office provided access to the local Lake Tyers Aboriginal community, who still rely on those banking services. If those kinds of banking services are ripped out of regional communities, they won't be as accessible. People don't have vehicles or the resources to go into town; they're not as privileged as some. So they rely totally on Australia Post outlets and the facilities that they have, including banking facilities. That's basically it.