Animal Health Australia and Plant Health Australia Funding Legislation Amendment Bill 2021 [2022] AUSStaCSBSD 35 (18 March 2022)

• Chapter 2
• Commentary on ministerial responses
• Animal Health Australia and Plant Health Australia Funding Legislation Amendment Bill 2021
• Instruments not subject to parliamentary disallowance1

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Chapter 2

Commentary on ministerial responses

2.1 This chapter considers the responses of ministers to matters previously raised by the committee.

Animal Health Australia and Plant Health Australia Funding Legislation Amendment Bill 2021

Purpose	This bill seeks to amend the Australian Animal Health Council (Livestock Industries) Funding Act 1996 and the Plant Health Australia (Plant Industries) Funding Act 2002 to streamline administrative processes by removing redundant provisions, to add provisions that create efficiencies and facilitate future levy arrangements, and to increase consistency between the Acts regarding the spending of emergency response levies.
Portfolio	Agriculture and Northern Australia
Introduced	House of Representatives on 25 November 2021
Bill status	Before the Senate

Instruments not subject to parliamentary disallowance^[1]

2.2 In Scrutiny Digest 1 of 2022 the committee requested the minister's advice as to why it is considered necessary and appropriate to amend the Plant Health Australia (Plant Industries) Funding Act 2002 to provide that relevant Plant Industry Members will no longer be declared by legislative instrument, noting that such declarations would therefore no longer be subject to parliamentary scrutiny.^[2]

Minister's response^[3]

2.3 The minister advised:

At present the Primary Industries legislation is unnecessarily linked to the PHA Act through the combined use of the designated bodies declarations made under the Primary Industries legislation. The primary purpose of the designated bodies declarations is to ensure the Minister must consider a designated body's representations prior to making recommendations to the Governor-General regarding regulations that effect levy changes that will apply to specified plant products.
In its current form, the PHA Act uses the designated bodies declarations as a means of identifying which Plant Industry Member represents a plant product on which a levy or charge is imposed. This can create a situation where a designated body declaration under the Primary Industry legislation is amended solely for purposes under the PHA Act. The purpose of these amendments is to simply delink this process and provide for a process within the PHA Act itself.
To become a Plant Health Australia member, an applicant body would be required to demonstrate that it represents the plant products ("crops") identified in its application. If the applicant body was successful, its representation of the plant product would be noted in the formal record and the Secretary of the department would make an instrument under the PHA Act determining it to be a relevant Plant Industry Member.
I note the changes would not impact in any way the ability of an industry body to seek designated body status for other levy-related purpose under the Primary Industries legislation. For additional clarity, I note these amendments do not impact on the nature or rate of levies or charges being applied.

Committee comment

2.4 The committee thanks the minister for this response. The committee notes the minister's advice that the purpose of items 9 and 10 of Schedule 1 to the bill is to provide for a process for identifying which plant industry members appropriately represent a particular plant product within the Plant Health Australia (Plant Industries) Funding Act 2002, rather than being required to amend a designated body declaration.

2.5 The committee also notes the minister's advice that the bill would not impact upon the ability of an industry body to seek designated body status for other levy-related purposes under the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Act 1999 or the Primary Industries (Customs) Charges Act 1999, nor would the bill impact on the nature or rate of levies or charges being applied.

2.6 The committee requests that an addendum to the explanatory memorandum containing the key information provided by the minister be tabled in the Parliament as soon as practicable, noting the importance of these explanatory materials as a point of access to understanding the law and, if needed, as extrinsic material to assist with interpretation (see section 15AB of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901).

2.7 In light of the information provided, the committee makes no further comment on this matter.

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[1] Schedule 1, items 9 and 10. The committee draws senators’ attention to these provisions pursuant to Senate Standing Order 24(1)(a)(iv).

[2] Senate Scrutiny of Bills Committee, Scrutiny Digest 1 of 2022, pp. 1-3.

[3] The minister responded to the committee's comments in a letter dated 22 February 2022. A copy of the letter is available on the committee's website: see correspondence relating to Scrutiny Digest 2 of 2022 available at: www.aph.gov.au/senate_scrutiny_digest.