Nigel Scullion (NT, Country Liberal Party, Minister for Indigenous Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I 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—

AUSTRALIAN ASTRONOMICAL OBSERVATORY (TRANSITION) BILL 2018

I am pleased to introduce the Australian Astronomical Observatory (Transition) Bill 2018, to support and give effect to the government's 2017-18 Budget measure 'Maintaining Australia's Optical Astronomy Capability'.

The new measure ushers in change, growth and a bright new era for Australian optical astronomy.

Astronomy and astrophysics are major scientific strengths for Australia. The spectacular discoveries and images created by our astronomers advance scientific understanding, stimulate interest by young people in scientific careers, and inspire all of us to think about our place in the universe.

Astronomy also leads to technological innovations with important spin-off applications valued by society, such as such as digital cameras, satellite global positioning systems, medical image processing software and CSIRO's development of Wi-Fi technology.

The Anglo-Australian Telescope at Siding Spring Observatory, near Coonabarabran has, since 1974, served generations of Australian and visiting overseas astronomers as one of the world's most productive observing facilities, in scientific output, publications and citations.

In 2010, the Australian Government assumed full ownership of the telescope and established the Australian Astronomical Observatory as our national optical astronomy organisation. The AAO, as it is known, continued to serve the astronomy community as a division of the Department of Industry, Innovation and Science, providing our astronomers with excellent observing facilities and services.

At its North Ryde headquarters in Sydney, AAO scientists and technical specialists continued to develop innovative instruments and technologies to keep the telescope at the forefront of discovery, and provide sought-after scientific capabilities to overseas telescopes.

The 3.9 metre Anglo-Australian Telescope is no longer in the top tier of telescopes globally as it had been in its earlier decades. In the last two decades, larger, more powerful telescopes have been dominating overseas: the so-called 'eight-metre' class telescopes (a reference to their primary mirror diameters) and the even larger 'thirty-metre' class telescopes now under construction.

These large telescopes and their high-performance instruments extend the boundaries of scientific discovery, seeing farther into the cosmos, detecting fainter objects, and resolving finer details. These are the telescopes of the future.

Through its Decadal Planning process, the Australian astronomy community highlighted a pressing, unmet national need for a stable, long-term partnership in a multi-national optical observatory. Such a partnership would provide Australia's astronomers with access to the world's best suite of eight-metre class telescopes and, through this access, enable them to remain internationally engaged and relevant in addressing the most important scientific questions of the era.

Recognising the transformation in the global astronomy sector and this pressing need to maintain our place in the discoveries of the future, the government is prioritising Australia's partnership in front-line multi-national astronomy infrastructure and working with the university sector to ensure that our domestic capability supports this.

On 11 July 2017, the government entered into a 10-year Strategic Partnership with the European Southern Observatory.

ESO, as it is known, operates the world's foremost collection of optical-infrared telescopes on high mountain summits in Chile's Atacama Desert. This includes the renowned quartet of 8-metre telescopes that comprise the 'Very Large Telescope', with their many advanced scientific instruments to analyse the light they collect from distant reaches of the cosmos.

The Australia-ESO Strategic Partnership gives our astronomers long-term, stable access to ESO telescopes at La Silla and Paranal Observatories in Chile.

It will enable our institutions to collaborate in developing new instrumentation, and open the door to Australian companies to tender competitively for ESO contracts at La Silla and Paranal.

The government recognises the ongoing value of the domestic astronomical facilities and the expert capability in the Australian Astronomical Observatory.

Prior to the government's optical astronomy measure in 2017-18, funding for AAO operations was due to terminate by 30 June 2020.

With strong, strategic backing from Australia's university sector, the government's optical astronomy measure is supporting the transfer of the AAO's critical domestic astronomical activities, assets and expert staff from the Commonwealth to new university-led consortia.

The Australian National University will lead a consortium to continue to operate the Anglo-Australian Telescope into the mid-2020s. By extending its operations by a further five years, we are extending the benefits of this telescope as an observing platform to astronomers, a testbed for new instrumentation innovations, and a community treasure for Coonabarabran.

The government is working with Macquarie University to develop a national optical instrumentation capability that will continue and further develop the AAO's renowned instrumentation activities. This work will be supported by Astronomy Australia Limited—a not-for-profit company that manages a range of research infrastructure programs for astronomy—through the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy.

The new consortium in Sydney will link with other Australian centres of expertise to design and build excellent optical instruments for observatories here and overseas. The capability will have an industry focus to address technical challenges, commercialise Australian innovations arising from astronomy, and potentially develop new applications beyond astronomy.

The Australian Astronomical Observatory (Transition) Bill provides for a smooth domestic astronomy transition from the Commonwealth to the new consortia. It retains key astronomical functions of the Australian Astronomical Observatory Act 2010 to provide a legislative basis for future government initiatives to continue to enable Australian astronomy engagement and excellence.

The government's optical astronomy measure will strengthen Australia's research and industry opportunities in the coming decade, extend the legacy of the Australian Astronomical Observatory and its global reputation, and ensure Australia remains at the forefront of global optical astronomy research.

I commend this Bill to the Chamber.

COMMERCE (TRADE DESCRIPTIONS) AMENDMENT BILL 2018

The Government is committed to bringing Australian border legislation into alignment with the country of origin labelling safe harbour defences under the Australian Consumer Law.

In 2017, the Government enacted the Competition andConsumer Amendment (Country of Origin) Act2017 to simplify and clarify the safe harbour defences under section 255 of Schedule 2 of the Competition and Consumer Act as part of its reform to Australia's Country of Origin Labelling framework. These defences enable a person to make a claim about the origin of the goods sold domestically without contravening the provisions of Schedule 2.

These defences are currently not available to importers who are required to apply a trade description on goods proposed to be imported into Australia.

The Commerce (Trade Descriptions) Amendment Bill 2018 would amend the Commerce (Trade Descriptions) Act1905 to enable importers to make a claim about the origin of goods, similar to those permitted under the Australian Consumer Law, without contravening the offence against a false trade description.

The alignment would reduce the complexity of enforcing origin marking requirements at the border, allowing the Australian Border Force to focus compliance activities on goods that do not meet the safe harbour defences.

The Bill would also insert an express head of power in the Commerce (Trade Descriptions) Act to enable the Commerce (Trade Descriptions) Regulation 2016 to be amended to incorporate information standards that are in force or existing from time to time. This is currently not possible without an express head of power.

As information standards are amended from time to time, the Bill will enable the Commerce (Trade Descriptions) Regulation to be amended to automatically incorporate changes to information standards.

HEALTH INSURANCE (APPROVED PATHOLOGY SPECIMEN COLLECTION CENTRES) TAX AMENDMENT BILL 2018

This Bill reduces the regulatory burden on the pathology sector without increasing the overall taxation burden. It amends the Health Insurance (Approved Pathology Specimen Collection Centres) Tax Act 2000 (the Pathology Tax Act) to require the tax payable on the grant of an approval of an Approved (Specimen) Collection Centre (ACC) to be paid every two years.

The Pathology Tax Act imposes a tax on the grant of an approval, or renewal, of a pathology specimen collection centre. Medicare benefits can be claimed for pathology services provided using specimens collected at an ACC.

The Pathology Tax Act currently imposes a tax of $1,000 for an approval of renewal of an ACC granted for a period of one year. Under the current arrangements, existing ACCs must renew their registration and pay this tax every 12 months. As an interim measure, in 2016, the Government agreed that all new ACCs may only be initially registered for a period of six months, with a $500 tax imposed. These ACCs can then be renewed annually. This requires pathology providers to complete application forms and pay the associated tax twice within a six month period. The interim arrangements were put in place with support from the pathology sector pending the development of the suite of measures to strengthen compliance arrangements.

This Bill will allow approvals to be granted for a two year period and will see no increase to the tax imposed. This Bill will amend the existing Pathology Tax Act to require the tax payable on the grant of an approval of an ACC to be amended from $1,000 annually to $2,000, to be paid two yearly. This will assist in addressing regulatory burden by streamlining administrative processes that the pathology sector encounter with the current arrangements. The rate of the tax has not been changed since the Act was enacted in 1999. After careful consideration the Government has determined that there should be no increase to the tax at this time to ensure that smaller pathology providers are not negatively impacted.

The Department has been, and will continue to engage with key stakeholders prior to 1 July 2018 to advise of the amendment to the tax and the extension of the timeframe for new and renewed ACC applications, including reaffirming the key elements of the measure announced in the 2017-18 Budget.

The Health Insurance (Eligible Collection Centres) Approval Principles 2010 (the Approval Principles) set out the terms for approvals of ACCs. Currently ACC approvals are required by the Approval Principles to be renewed every 12 months. It is intended that the Approval Principles will be amended to extend ACC approval periods to two years to reflect amendments to the Pathology Tax Act.

These changes will be welcomed by the pathology sector as it decreases the effort currently involved in annual ACC renewal.

These amendments contribute to the implementation of the 2017-18 Budget measure 'Pathology Approved Collection Centres — strengthening compliance', which includes new compliance arrangements, strengthening compliance activities related to prohibited practices by increased data collection and analysis; automation of applications, cancelations and renewals through the Health Professional Online Services (HPOS) of the Department of Human Services. These amendments further complement these compliance activities by extending and streamlining ACC approval periods from one to two years, with the tax adjusted from $1,000 each year to $2,000 every two years.

In summary, this Bill will reduce the regulatory burden of pathology providers and will not negatively impact smaller pathology providers as there is no increase to the financial component. The tax will be paid two yearly instead of annually.

Debate adjourned.

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