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Australian Senate Standing Committee for the Scrutiny of Bills - Scrutiny Digests |
[Scrutiny Digests 3 & 4 of 2017]
1.160 On 28 March 2017 the House of Representatives agreed to one Government amendment, the Assistant Minister to the Deputy Prime Minister (Mr Hartsuyker) presented a supplementary explanatory memorandum and the bill was read a third time.
1.161 The committee has no comment on this amendment or the supplementary explanatory memorandum.
[Scrutiny Digest 1 of 2017 no comment]
1.162 On 27 March 2017 the Treasurer (Mr Morrison) presented a supplementary explanatory memorandum.
1.163 On 28 March 2017 the House of Representatives agreed to three Government amendments and the bill was read a third time.
1.164 The committee has no comment on these amendments or the supplementary explanatory memorandum.
[Scrutiny Digest 2 of 2017 no comment]
1.165 On 20 March 2017 the House of Representatives agreed to one Independent amendment.
1.166 The committee has no comment on this amendment.
[Scrutiny Digest 4 of 2017 awaiting response]
1.167 On 30 March 2017 the Senate agreed to nine Government amendments and one Opposition amendment and the Attorney-General tabled two supplementary explanatory memoranda.
1.168 On 31 March 2017 the Senate agreed to two Government amendments. On the same day in the House of Representatives the Leader of the House (Mr Pyne) presented a revised explanatory memorandum and the bill was read a third time.
1.169 The committee has no comment on these amendments or the supplementary explanatory memoranda.
[Scrutiny Digests 1 & 3 of 2017]
1.170 On 28 March 2017 the Assistant Minister for Social Services and Disability Services (Mrs Prentice) presented a replacement explanatory memorandum in the House of Representatives.
1.171 The committee thanks the Minister for Health for including additional key information in the replacement explanatory memorandum as previously requested by the committee.[1]
Previous citation: Transport Security Amendment (Serious or Organised Crime) Bill 2016
[Alert Digest 6 of 2016 no response required]
1.172 On 27 March 2017 the Senate agreed to 12 Opposition and two Liberal Democratic Party amendments and the bill was read a third time.
1.173 On 30 March 2017 the House of Representatives disagreed to Senate amendments 7, 8, 13 and 14. The House also disagreed to amendments 1‑–6 and
9–12, however ten Government amendments were made in their place. The Minister for Infrastructure and Transport (Mr Chester) also presented a supplementary explanatory memorandum.
1.174 Amendments 8 and 14 agreed to by the Senate, but disagreed to by the House of Representatives, seek to provide that the regulations must include provisions allowing a person, in relation to whom a security check has been carried out, to be able to seek reconsideration or merits review of a decision in relation to an aviation security identification card (ASIC) or maritime security identification card (MSIC).
1.175 On 30 March 2017 the Minister for Infrastructure and Transport presented reasons, which were subsequently adopted by the House of Representatives, for disagreeing to the Senate's amendments. The reasons note that there is currently a comprehensive appeals process in the Aviation Transport Security Regulation 2005 (Aviation Regulations) and Maritime Transport and Offshore Facilities Security Regulations 2003 (Maritime Regulations) and that these appeal processes have existed in the respective Aviation and Maritime Regulations since the inception of these schemes.
1.176 The reasons further state that the 'Office of Parliamentary Counsel has advised that introducing ASIC and MSIC appeals mechanisms into primary legislation would not create any additional practical protection against future changes to the Aviation and Maritime Regulations'.
1.177 The committee requests the Minister's advice as to how inserting a positive requirement in primary legislation that the regulations must provide for an appeals process would not create any additional protection against future changes to the Aviation and Maritime Regulations.
[Alert Digest 6 of 2016 no response required]
1.178 On 31 March 2017 the Senate agreed to six Government amendments, the Minister for Finance tabled a supplementary explanatory memorandum and the bill was read a third time.
1.179 The committee has no comment on these amendments or the supplementary explanatory memorandum.
[Alert Digest 10 of 2016 and Scrutiny Digest 1 of 2017]
1.180 On 27 March 2017 the Senate agreed to seven Government and three Opposition amendments and Senator McGrath tabled a supplementary explanatory memorandum.
1.181 On 29 March 2017 the House of Representatives agreed to the Senate amendments, the Minister for Veterans' Affairs (Mr Tehan) presented a further supplementary explanatory memorandum and the bill was passed.
1.182 In Scrutiny Digest No. 1 of 2017, the committee commented on a proposed public interest disclosure power in this bill. At that time, the committee noted that it considered that the disclosure of any information obtained in the course of the performance of a Secretary's duties under legislation to any person for any purpose, is a significant matter that should be appropriately defined or limited in primary legislation.[2]
1.183 In Scrutiny Digest No. 3 of 2017, the committee welcomed earlier government amendments (passed on 2 March 2017) which imposed a positive duty on the Minister for Veterans' Affairs to make rules regulating the exercise of the public interest disclosure power by the Secretary. However, the committee noted that it remained of the view that, from a scrutiny perspective, it would still be appropriate for at least high-level guidance about the exercise of the Secretary's disclosure power to be included in the primary legislation.
1.184 Further government amendments agreed to on 27 March 2017 remove all of the public interest disclosure provisions from the bill. The committee notes that, by removing these provisions, the committee's remaining scrutiny concerns in relation to this matter have been addressed.
[1] Senate Standing Committee for the Scrutiny of Bills, Scrutiny Digest No. 3 of 2017, 22 March 2017, pp 103–123.
[2] Senate Standing Committee for the Scrutiny of Bills, Scrutiny Digest No. 1 of 2017, 8 February 2017, pp 94–98.
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URL: http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/other/AUSStaCSBSD/2017/143.html