EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

 

Select Legislative Instrument 2005 No. 248

 

Issued by the Authority of the Minister for Justice and Customs

 

Customs Act 1901

 

Customs Amendment Regulations 2005 (No.      7)

 

Subsection 270(1) of the Customs Act 1901 (the Act) provides in part that the Governor-General may make regulations not inconsistent with the Act prescribing all matters which by the Act are required or permitted to be prescribed or as may be necessary or convenient to be prescribed for giving effect to the Act or for the conduct of any business relating to the Customs.

 

The purpose of the Regulations is to omit the references to the Air Navigation Act in regulations 31AAA and 167 of the Customs Regulations 1926 (the Principal Regulations) and insert references to the Aviation Transport Security Act 2004 (the Aviation Transport Security Act).

 

Section 64AF of the Act sets out the circumstances in which the operator of an international passenger air service must provide access to passenger information to authorised officers of the Australian Customs Service (Customs).  Authorised officers must only access such information for the purposes of performing his or her functions under a law of the Commonwealth prescribed by the Principal Regulations)  Regulation 31AAA of the Principal Regulations previously prescribed the Air Navigation Act 1920 (the Air Navigation Act) for the purposes of section 64AF of the Act.

 

Section 186A of the Act provides that if a document is examined under section 186 and, as a result of the examination, a Customs officer is satisfied that the document, or part of the document may contain information relevant to the commission or attempted commission of an offence against a prescribed Act, the officer may make a copy of, or take an extract from, that document.  Regulation 167 of the Principal Regulations previously prescribed the Air Navigation Act for the purposes of section 186.

 

The functions and offences under the Air Navigation Act that were relevant to the exercise of powers under sections 64AF and 186 of the Act were repealed on

10 March 2005 by Schedule 1 to the Aviation Transport Security (Consequential Amendments and Transitional Provisions) Act 2004.  Those offences are now included in the Aviation Transport Security Act. 

 

Therefore, it was necessary to omit the references to the Air Navigation Act in regulations 31AAA and 167 of the Principal Regulations and replace these with references to the Aviation Transport Security Act.  This will ensure the ongoing exercise of the powers in sections 64AF and 186 of the Act by Customs officers in relation to the Aviation Transport Security Act.

 

No consultation was undertaken in relation to the Regulations as they are of a minor or machinery nature and do not substantially alter existing arrangements.

 

The Regulations commence on the day after they are registered.

 

0508539A