The PRESIDENT (Senator the Hon. Stephen Parry) took the chair at 9:30, read prayers and made an acknowledgement of country.
Social Security (Administration) Amendment (Consumer Lease Exclusion) Bill 2015
The Government recognises that small amount lenders can play an important role in the economy by providing credit to consumers who are excluded from mainstream forms of finance.
The Government wants to ensure that the regulatory framework strikes the right balance by protecting vulnerable consumers without imposing an undue regulatory burden on industry.
If you enjoy being busy and having a business you can run, that does not run you, then maybe R4K is worth a look.
... leases that run for an indefinite period, or have a duration of four months or less, will be excluded from Centrepay ...
…increased cooperation between the department and consumer protection regulators.
While customers may still use Centrepay for regulated consumer leases—
I would encourage people to carefully read the fine print and consider all of their options.
The Senate divided. [11:56]
(The Deputy President—Senator Marshall)
That this bill be now read a third time.
SELECTION OF BILLS COMMITTEE
REPORT NO. 11 OF 2015
1. The committee met in private session on Wednesday, 9 September 2015 at 7.12 pm.
2. The committee resolved to recommend—That:
(a) contingent upon its introduction in the House of Representatives, the provisions of the Social Services Legislation Amendment (More Generous Means Testing for Youth Payments) Bill 2015 bereferred immediately to the Community Affairs Legislation Committee for inquiry and report by 9 November 2015 (see appendix 1 for a statement of reasons for referral);
(b) the provisions of the Tax and Superannuation Laws Amendment (Better Targeting the Income Tax Transparency Laws) Bill 2015 bereferred immediately to the Economics Legislation Committee for inquiry and report by 12 October 2015 (see appendix 2 for a statement of reasons for referral).
3. The committee resolved to recommend—That the following bills not be referred to committees:
• Aged Care Amendment (Independent Complaints Arrangements) Bill 2015
• Australian Centre for Social Cohesion Bill 2015
• Banking Laws Amendment (Unclaimed Money) Bill 2015
• Fair Work Amendment (Penalty Rates Exemption for Small Businesses) Bill 2015
• Maritime Transport and Offshore Facilities Security Amendment (Inter-State Voyages) Bill 2015
• Tax and Superannuation Laws Amendment (2015 Measures No. 4) Bill 2015.
The committee recommends accordingly.
4. The committee deferred consideration of the following bills to its next meeting:
• Australian Immunisation Register Bill 2015
Australian Immunisation Register (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2015
• Competition and Consumer Amendment (Australian Country of Origin Food Labelling) Bill 2015
• Corporations Amendment (Publish What You Pay) Bill 2014
• Maritime Legislation Amendment Bill 2015
• Marriage Equality Plebiscite Bill 2015
• Social Security and Other Legislation Amendment (Caring for Single Parents) Bill 2014
• Social Security Legislation Amendment (Further Strengthening Job Seeker Compliance) Bill 2015.
David Bushby
Chair
10 September 2015
SELECTION OF BILLS COMMITTEE
Proposal to refer a bill to a committee:
Name of bill:
Social Services Legislation Amendment (More Generous Means Testing for youth Payments)
Reasons for referral/principal issues for consideration:
To better understand the implications and impacts of the proposed measure
Possible submissions or evidence from:
ACOSS
National Welfare Rights Network
Committee to which bill is to be referred:
Senate Community Affairs Legislation Committee
Possible hearing date(s):
To be determined by the committee
Possible reporting date:
9 November 2015
(signed)
Senator Anne McEwen
APPENDIX 2
SELECTION OF BILLS COMMITTEE
Proposal to refer a bill to a committee:
Name of bill:
Tax and Superannuation Laws Amendment (Better Targeting the Income Tax Transparency Laws) Bill 2015.
Reasons for referral/principal issues for consideration:
To determine whether the government's premise for introducing this legislation is based on evidence.
Possible submissions or evidence from:
Australian Federal Police
Australian Tax Office
Treasury
Tax Justice Network
Committee to which bill is to be referred:
Economics Legislation Committee
Possible hearing date(s):
22 September
Sitting days
Possible reporting date:
12 October 2015
(signed)
Senator Rachel Siewert
That—
(a) government business order of the day no. 2 (Aged Care Amendment (Independent Complaints Arrangements) Bill 2015) be considered from 12.45 pm today; and
(b) government business be called on after consideration of the bill listed in paragraph (a) and considered till not later than 2 pm today.
That the order of general business for consideration today be as follows:
(a) general business notice of motion no. 850 standing in the name of Senator Siewert relating to parliamentary approval for Australian forces to be deployed to Syria; and
(b) orders of the day relating to documents.
That the following general business orders of the day be considered on Thursday, 17 September 2015 under consideration of private senators’ bills:
No. 65 Higher Education Support Amendment (New Zealand Citizens) Bill 2015.
No. 69 Fair Work Amendment (Penalty Rates Exemption for Small Businesses) Bill 2015.
That the Senate—
(a) notes that:
(i) urgent action is needed to ensure that Australia does not lose its steelmaking capacity, in the wake of the global steel industry crisis, and
(ii) steel-producing nations are responding to the oversupply and dumping of sub cost steel with a range of strategies that include increasing public procurement, restructuring and emergency safeguards in the form of temporary targeted tariffs; and
(b) calls on the Abbott Government to:
(i) immediately refer matters related to dumped sub-cost steel into Australia to the Anti-Dumping Commission for a preliminary report within three weeks to include an assessment of the possible harm to local industry, and options for action including duties and World Trade Organization emergency safeguards,
(ii) ensure that the Anti-Dumping Commission is suitably resourced to pursue ongoing improvements to Australia's anti-dumping system and reduce harm to local industry resulting from dumped imports,
(iii) work with the steel industry, unions, businesses and communities to minimise the impact on local jobs and living standards, particularly at the Port Kembla site in the Illawarra, from the world-wide over-supply of steel by developing:
(A) a constructive Steel Industry Plan, including comprehensive policies for improvements in Australian Industry Participation, and
(B) public procurement frameworks that include whole of life cost methods for assessing and determining procurement contracts,
(iv) prioritise structural adjustment and jobactive assistance to the Illawarra to minimise the impact on local jobs and living standards,
(v) reinstate the Local Employment Coordinator to assist steelworkers losing their jobs to retrain and gain alternative employment, and
(vi) continue the work of the International Trade Remedies Forum to address the need for ongoing improvements to Australia's anti dumping system, and any outstanding matters from the previous Government's suite of reforms to streamline Australia's anti-dumping system.
The Senate divided. [12:08]
(Deputy President—Senator Marshall)
That the Senate—
(a) notes, with regret, the resignation of Mr Bernie Fraser as Chair of the independent Climate Change Authority 2 years before the expiry of his 5 year term;
(b) congratulates Mr Fraser on his outstanding service as chair of the board and his contribution to the work of the Authority;
(c) notes that the Authority now no longer has a quorum; and
(d) calls on the Federal Government to:
(i) immediately appoint a replacement chair to ensure that the board is able to function and allow the work of the Authority to proceed,
(ii) abandon its plan to abolish the Authority, and
(iii) stop ignoring the Authority’s advice on the need for ambitious pollution reduction targets to safeguard Australians’ way of life from dangerous global warming.
That the Senate—
(a) notes that Thursday 10 September, is World Suicide Prevention Day and RU OK Day in Australia, and acknowledges that:
(i) the theme for World Suicide Prevention Day is ‘Preventing Suicide: Reaching Out and Saving Lives’, which is aimed at encouraging people to speak up and reduce the stigma of talking about suicide prevention safely, and
(ii) World Suicide Prevention Day and RU OK Day is an opportunity to build awareness of the support and services available to everyone who has been touched by suicide, and
(b) recognises the great work of the National Coalition for Suicide Prevention to draw attention to this issue, to make a positive impact on the mental health and wellbeing of all Australians and to help build resilient communities that work together to prevent suicide;
(c) notes that:
(i) suicide rates remain unacceptably high, especially among vulnerable groups, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, young people and people from lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex [LGBTI] communities—nearly 2 500 people tragically die by suicide each year, with nearly twice as many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people dying by suicide than non-Indigenous people—and each day, seven people die by suicide in Australia,
(ii) the National Mental Health Commission’s final report on the review of mental health programs and services recommends the development of an evidence‑based National Suicide Prevention Framework as a priority,
(iii) the Commission’s report was handed to Government on 1 December 2014, but was not formally released by the Government until 16 April 2015 after it was embarrassingly leaked, resulting in a 4 month delay in any action in response,
(iv) the sector is becoming increasingly frustrated because of the Government’s lack of action on implementing any of the recommendations contained within the National Mental Health Commission’s report, and
(v) the mental health sector is facing difficulties because of the lack of funding certainty beyond June 2016, making it increasingly challenging for the sector to employ skilled workers and offer ongoing services to the people who need it most; and
(d) urges the Government to announce its plans for a transformed mental health system which will give certainty and confidence to people living with mental illness, their families and carers, and the organisations that support them in the very near future.
That the Senate—
(a) notes that:
(i) the Temporary Work (Skilled) (subclass 457) visa is designed to enable employers to address labour shortages by bringing in genuinely skilled workers where they cannot find an appropriately skilled Australian, and
(ii) many employers, including those in the trade union movement, have utilised this program to address skill shortages in their workforces; and
(b) condemns the short‑sighted view of those who label this program as a ‘form of slavery’ and not a vital tool in improving the productivity of Australian businesses.
The Senate divided. [12:23]
(The Deputy President—Senator Marshall)
That the Senate—
(a) notes that:
(i) the Nindji Nindji Aboriginal arts and music festival, the only one of its kind in the Pilbara, has been running in South Headland since 1996, and
(ii) due to funding cuts by the Federal Government the Nindji Nindji festival did not occur in 2015;
(b) acknowledges that:
(i) remaining connected to culture is essential in ensuring wellbeing and positive outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, and
(ii) important cultural events like the Nindji Nindji festival are integral in helping Australia move towards reconciliation; and
(c) calls on the Government to reinstate funding to ensure that this important cultural event occurs in 2016.
That the Senate—
(a) recognises the excellent performance and financial turnaround of the Qantas group;
(b) notes that:
(i) all sectors in the group returned a profit,
(ii) Qantas posted an annual profit before tax for 2014‑15 of $975 million,
(iii) Qantas is placing orders for eight new 787‑9 long range aircraft,
(vi) shareholders will receive a return of $505 million,
(v) Qantas negotiated new industrial agreements with pilots, and
(vi) the Australian Government’s abolition of the carbon tax saved Qantas $116 million; and
(c) calls on all members and senators in the Australian Parliament to celebrate the achievements of our national carrier and support it into the future.
The Senate divided. [12:34]
(The Deputy President—Senator Marshall)
That the Senate—
(a) notes that:
(i) Thursday, 10 September 2015, is World Suicide Prevention Day, and
(ii) this day is an awareness day to provide worldwide commitment and action to prevent suicide;
(b) recognises and commends the organisers of World Suicide Prevention Day, both in Australia and internationally, who are working to bring communities together to:
(i) reduce the stigma associated with mental health issues,
(ii) increase the awareness of mental health issues, and
(iii) constructively work towards eliminating the incidence of suicide;
(c) acknowledges that:
(i) on average seven Australians commit suicide every day, of which 75 per cent are male, and
(ii) Queensland has the second highest suicide rate in the country; and
(d) calls on the Government to increase its efforts to assist mental health organisations, government agencies and other service providers to increase public awareness of mental health issues and enhance the scope, delivery and availability of support services to the Australian community to reduce suicide rates across the country.
That senators be discharged from and appointed to committees as follows:
Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity—Joint Statutory Committee—
Discharged—Senator O'Sullivan
Appointed—Senator Johnston
Environment and Communications References Committee—
Appointed—
Substitute member: Senator Whish-Wilson to replace Senator Waters for the committee's inquiry into large capacity fishing vessels
Participating member: Senator Waters
Human Rights—Joint Statutory Committee—
Appointed—Senator McKim
Law Enforcement—Joint Statutory Committee—
Discharged—Senator O'Sullivan
Appointed—Senator Johnston
Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee—
Discharged—Senator O'Sullivan
Appointed—
Senators Lindgren and McKim
Participating member: Senator O'Sullivan
Publications—Standing Committee—
Discharged—Senator O'Sullivan
Appointed—Senator Reynolds.
Water Amendment Bill 2015
Aged Care Amendment (Independent Complaints Arrangements) Bill 2015
Mr Yates also welcomed moving the aged care complaints scheme out of the department to the Aged Care Commissioner. COTA has long called for a more independent complaints scheme.
'Having complaints managed by an independent umpire will give older people greater confidence in how complaints are handled,' he said.
… the separation of complaints handling from the funder and regulator of aged care services--a key recommendation of the 2009 review—reflected best practice and would help restore public and industry confidence in the scheme.
That this bill be now read a third time.
Water Amendment Bill 2015
… that the Federal Parliament will be trusted with Federal questions of the gravity involved in the use of the waters of the Murray.
... the 1500 GL per year limit ... will be of significant benefit to farming and irrigator communities in the ... Basin.
Recovering water through infrastructure investment instead of buybacks also has positive impacts on the supply chain. Where farmers are able to maintain their productivity this helps to protect on-farm employment and jobs in milk factories, wineries, fruit and nut processing plants as well as sustaining jobs in transport and marketing. Keeping jobs in small and medium sized towns is critical to the economic and social survival of regional communities. These long term benefits are also supported by a short term boost to local economies as contractors are employed to construct the infrastructure projects.
Better engagement is required between the Commonwealth and the states to resolve a number of issues where different views about the performance of various on-farm efficiency driven programs exist …
(1) Schedule 1, Part 1, page 5 (after line 12), at the end of the Part, add:
2A Subsection 86AE(2)
Omit "Paragraphs 105(3)(b) and (4)(b)", substitute "Paragraphs 105(4)(b)".
2B Subsection 105(3)
Repeal the subsection, substitute:
(1) The functions of the Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder are to be performed for the purpose of achieving the objects of this Act.
2C At the end of subsection 105(4)
Add:
Note: This subsection is modified in relation to water access rights acquired by the Commonwealth with amounts debited from the Water for the Environment Special Account (see subsection 86AE(2)).
2D Subsection 106(1)
Repeal the subsection, substitute:
(1) The Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder must not dispose of water and Commonwealth environmental water holdings during a water accounting period unless the water or the water holdings are not required in the water accounting period to meet the objectives of:
(a) if the water is in, or the water holdings relate to water in, the Murray‑Darling Basin—the environmental watering plan; or
(b) if the water is in, or the water holdings relate to water in, an area outside the Murray‑Darling Basin—any plans specified in the regulations in relation to that area; or
(c) any applicable environmental watering schedules.
(2) Schedule 1, Part 2, page 6 (before line 3), before item 3, insert:
3A Subsection 6.04(2) (note)
Repeal the note.
3B Paragraph 6.05(3)(a)
Omit "143 GL", substitute "128.7 GL".
3C Paragraph 6.05(3)(b)
Omit "425.3 GL", substitute "382.8 GL".
3D Paragraph 6.05(3)(c)
Omit "458 GL", substitute "412.2 GL".
3E Paragraph 6.05(3)(d)
Omit "82.8 GL", substitute "74.5 GL".
3F Paragraph 6.05(3)(e)
Omit "4.9 GL", substitute "4.4 GL".
"The CEWH should have the option to sell water on the temporary market," …
Mr Walsh suggested the money—
be spent on projects such as pumping environmental water into the Hattah Lakes and Gunbower Forest.
To be told I am a double dipper and I'm rorting is a slap in the face to me and all public servants, nurses, teachers, firefighters and the average public servant on a normal wage.
Almost $40 billion will be spent on a fleet build centred in Adelaide on acquisition. It is not on acquisition and sustainment; it is on acquisition.
It’s embarrassing watching Labor dance around why they oppose ChAFTA when they didn’t oppose similar deals with other countries …
That the Senate take note of the answers given by ministers to questions without notice asked by Opposition senators today.
If you look at a worst-case situation where nobody is operating with Australian crews, then I assume that SeaRoad would be forced to respond to that and seek to lower cost by employing foreign crews. That, in itself, has some enormous impacts that have not been particularly well publicised—that is, what do we do with the 60-odd seafarers we currently employ?
The reason why unemployment jumped despite much better-than-expected jobs growth is that the participation rate soared 0.3 percentage points to 65.1 per cent.
That the Senate take note of the answer given by the Minister representing the Minister for Immigration and Border Protection, Senator Cash, to a question without notice asked by Senator Gallacher today on allegations of abuse at the regional processing centre at Nauru.
I will do what I say we will do.
... we will keep the commitments that we make. All of the commitments that we make will be commitments that are carefully costed and the savings to fund them will ... be well-known well before people go to the polls on Saturday, September the 7th.
Australia is one of only two countries where parental leave isn't based on a mother's actual wage. If people receive their actual wage while sick or on holiday, they should ... receive their actual wage while on parental leave. Parental leave is supposed to be a workplace entitlement, not a welfare payment.
For instance, here in the ACT, there are lots of Commonwealth public servants who have quite a generous paid parental leave scheme. Why should there be double-dipping—once, as a public servant and another ... through the social security system?
That the Senate take note of the answer given by the Minister for Human Services (Senator Payne) to a question without notice asked by Senator Whish-Wilson today relating to the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement.
From an economy-wide GDP modelling perspective, the parameters would not be significant enough to alter Treasury forecasting.
They were often misleadingly pitched as something that must be done 'for the national good', he said. It isn’t really–it’s not going to have any major impact on GDP per capita.
That parliamentary approval should be required for Australian forces to be deployed to Syria.
This cable suggests that the U.S. goal in December 2006 was to undermine the Syrian government by any available means, and that what mattered was whether U.S. action would help destabilize the government, not what other impacts the action might have. … In public, the U.S. was opposed to “Islamist extremists” everywhere, but in private the U.S. saw the “potential threat to the regime from the increasing presence of transiting Islamist extremists” as an “opportunity” which the U.S. should take action to try to increase.
… in December 2006, the man heading the U.S. Embassy in Syria advocated in a cable to the Secretary of State and the White House that the U.S. government collaborate with Saudi Arabia and Egypt to promote sectarian conflict in Syria between Sunni and Shia as a means of destabilizing the Syrian government.
U.S. public disgust with the sectarian civil war in Iraq unleashed by the U.S. invasion had just cost Republicans control of Congress in the November 2006 election. The election result immediately produced the resignation of Donald Rumsfeld as Secretary of Defense. No one working for the U.S. government on foreign policy at the time could have been unaware of the implications of promoting Sunni-Shia sectarianism.
… trying to drain the Middle East swamps through military action is, we should know by now, more likely than not to be counterproductive.
A resonant cry for peace and accountability rings out.
The most realistic short-term policy goal in Syria is to find ways to limit the areas of the country in direct conflict, with the aim of both containing extremist violence and significantly reducing the number of non-combatant deaths. This goal is not as far-fetched as it sounds, and there is already a basis for pursuing it: through a series of local cease-fires that could, if properly implemented and enforced, provide a path toward stability in several regions of the country, even as conflict continues elsewhere. In particular, clusters of cease-fires around Hama, Horns, and Damascus, and possibly Aleppo, could help end the conflict in a larger region along Syria's principal north-south axis, bringing a degree of normality to daily life in a vital sector of the country.
The more we do militarily in the Middle East against IS and announce it publicly, the more likely it is that its acolytes will try to mount attacks in Australia or against Australians in Muslim countries.
Any Australian intervention in Syria would clearly be illegal under international law. The practical benefits of bombing Syria are limited, if any.
… may well compromise an operation and the safety of Australian forces or those of their allies.
On the other hand, the committee contends that if such information were necessarily withheld from the Parliament, then those required under the proposed legislation to make critical decisions about the deployment of forces would not be fully informed—an equally concerning situation for the security of the nation and its forces.
… the power to make war, deploy troops and declare peace – are now part of the executive power of the Commonwealth exercised by the Governor-General on the advice of the Federal Executive Council or responsible ministers. Contemporary practice, however, is that decisions to go to war or deploy troops are matters for the Prime Minister and Cabinet and do not involve the Governor-General or the Federal Executive Council.
The Federal Cabinet can, without parliamentary approval or consultation, commit Canadian forces to action abroad, whether in the form of a specific current operation or possible future contingencies resulting from international treaty obligations. Under the Canadian Constitution [Constitution Act, 1867, sections 15 and 19], command of the armed forces … is vested in the Queen and exercised in her name by the federal Cabinet acting under the leadership of the Prime Minister.
The formal right to declare war was clearly part of the Royal Prerogative inherited from Great Britain in 1840 and it remains an acknowledged part of New Zealand law. Defence and wartime prerogatives include the right to declare war and peace, and the deployment and armament of defence forces.
The Royal Prerogative is primarily exercised by the Governor-General on the advice of elected ministers or executive by authority of the Letters Patent Constituting the Office of the Governor-General of New Zealand 1983 .
The deployment of troops and the issuing of orders to engage in hostilities are matters of Royal Prerogative, exercisable by Ministers. The Government has liberty of action in this field, and Parliament need not give its approval.
Since 2003 there have been calls for aspects of the Royal Prerogative, including the monarch’s war powers, to be codified and subject to parliamentary scrutiny.
… grants to Congress the power to declare war, to raise and support armies, and to provide and maintain a navy.
The President in every possible instance shall consult with Congress before introducing United States Armed Forces into hostilities or into situations where imminent involvement in hostilities is clearly indicated by the circumstances …
… rejected the contention that the president must have congressional authority to order American forces into combat by saying 'Case law makes clear that the Congress does not have the exclusive right to determine whether or not the United States engages in war'.
… naval and military defence of the Commonwealth and of the several States, and the control of the forces to execute and maintain the laws of the Commonwealth;
Much of the information under consideration would be classified, for example risks to personnel, Defence or AFP assets, their strength and location, their force readiness, as well as the level of commitment and capabilities of likely allies, and the compatibility and complementarity of their forces. Clearly much of this information could not be disclosed and, if so, would have the potential to compromise the safety and security of any proposed operation or adversely affect diplomatic relations with potential allies.
Terrorist is a word that is very commonly used against us by those same people in Iraq who have been radicalised.
… anything that creates terror is, by definition, terrorism.
Terrorism in the context of national security has a specific meaning. Anything that creates terror is not, by definition, terrorism.
My resignation was forced, because the Nauru government of President Baron Waqa MP had revoked my visa, thus making it impossible for me to perform the role of Chief Justice. The actions of the Nauru government constituted a series of flagrant breaches of the Rule of Law. The fact that the government is not committed to the Rule of Law should be a matter of concern to the Australian government.
Resident Magistrate and Registrar of the Supreme Court, Peter Law, was arrested on 19 January 2014, forced on to an aeroplane and deported under police escort. No reasons were given to him by the government for this extraordinary action. The reasons, however, are now very clear – Mr Law had offended the Minister for Justice and Border Control, Mr David Adeang, by making interim orders, as Registrar, restraining the unlawful deportation of two expatriate businessmen, an Australian, Rod Henshaw, and a Fijian, Mohammed Haneef.