Nick Xenophon (SA, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

I seek leave to table an explanatory memorandum relating to the bill.

Leave granted.

I table an explanatory memorandum and seek leave to have the second reading speech incorporated in Hansard.

Leave granted.

The speech read as follows—

NATIONAL FLAG ACT AMENDMENT BILL 2014

The aim of this Bill is to require Australian flags flown, used or supplied by the Commonwealth to be made in Australia from materials manufactured in Australia.

The provisions in this Bill follow information disclosed by the Department of Parliamentary Services during Senate Estimates hearings in February 2014. According to the evidence provided by DPS, the Commonwealth procurement guidelines do not allow tenders to specify a country of origin for goods. As such, the flag flying above Australian Parliament House may not be Australian made.

The reasons behind this Bill, however, are not based solely on patriotism; instead, they are prompted by serious concern for Australia's manufacturing sector.

Senator Madigan and I believe that the Australian Parliament, and more broadly the Commonwealth, should be doing more to support our manufacturing sector. Australian taxpayers deserve to have their money used to benefit the Australian economy. While goods made overseas may be cheaper in the short term, they lack the beneficial long term flow-on effects, such as greater employment, that Australian spending creates.

There are also additional benefits. When the Parliament or Commonwealth tenders to an Australian company, we know that Australian taxpayer money is supporting companies that comply with workplace relations laws, including workplace safety requirements. The recent public outcry that followed the tragic collapse of a clothing factory in Bangladesh last year, which resulted in the deaths of over 1,000 people and injured thousands more, has shown how strongly Australians believe and support workplace rights.

We need to do more to ensure the Parliament and the Commonwealth can support the Australian economy and our manufacturing sector, despite free trade agreements. Most Australians would agree that the flags flying from our Commonwealth buildings are an excellent place to start.

I seek leave to continue my remarks later.

Leave granted; debate adjourned.