The SPEAKER ( Hon. Bronwyn Bishop ) took the chair at 12:00, made an acknowledgement of country and read prayers.
Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Amendment Bill 2013
A number of the provisions contained within the proposed Bill place a higher/more extreme onus than those prescribed under the Corporations Act 2001 for Company Directors.
The provisions of this Bill in this area will operate very unfairly on registered employer organisations and their officers, and it is essential that the Bill is amended. The Bill would impose a far more onerous regime for officers of registered organisations than what applies to directors of public companies. The regime, if enacted, would undoubtedly deter persons from standing for office in employer organisations. In practice the provisions of the Bill would seriously impede many organisations from carrying on their daily business operations.
… of particular concern is the impact the Bill may have on smaller employer organisations as the relative cost associated with complying with the new obligations imposed by the Bill may have a much more drastic impact on these smaller organisations than it would on larger organisations. Master Builders therefore strongly submits the passage of this Bill be postponed …
We submit that due to the extremely limited timeframe and the limited resources of a small organisation, the Master Plumbers' has had insufficient time to properly consider the technical detail, implementation or impact. We urge the Committee to delay the progress of this Bill …
ACCI does not support further changes to the RO Act at this stage.
The timeline adopted by the Government for the development and proposed passage of this Bill is entirely unsatisfactory.
…the changes proposed by the Minister will significantly improve the financial reporting framework, governance and accountability for registered organisations…
Generally speaking, what the government has sought to do with these bills is to ensure that the same standards of conduct and behaviour which the law imposes on company directors and on corporations should be imposed and expected of registered organisations and the officers of those organisations.
… good for wages, it was good for jobs and it was good for workers. And let’s never forget that.
That all the words after "That" be omitted with a view to substituting the following words:
"the House declines to give the bill a second reading because it would be ill advised to continue having regard to the:
(1) adverse impact of the creation of the Registered Organisations Commission on registered organisations, including unions, employer and employee groups; and
(2) fact that last year the Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2009 (the Act) was amended to improve disclosure requirements, transparency, accountability and amended to also triple civil penalties for breaches of the Act."
Many registered organisations control assets worth millions of dollars—they are effectively dealing with the cash flow and investments similar to those of large businesses.
Fair Work Australia is an agency independent of the executive. It must retain its independence, particularly in the face of partisan politicking. These amendments are proposed by the government for the sole purpose of improving the operation of Fair Work Australia's investigative function. They are supported by the government and the members of the NWRCC.
I actually believe there is a higher responsibility for us as guardians of workers' money to protect that money and to act diligently and honestly ... The reality is I do not have any issue with increasing the level of requirements and penalties …
Reform brought in by a Coalition government and resisted by many unionists actually served for the better governance of unions.
The commission will have stronger investigation and information-gathering powers than those that currently apply. These will be modelled on those available to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission …
Unions have become more like 'virtual' bodies, poor in membership numbers but rich in resources leveraged from super financing, training funds and contractor extortion.
WorkChoices was a political mistake, but it may not have been an economic one.
Let me begin my contribution to this debate by reminding members that workplace reform was one of the greatest achievements of the Howard government.
Compulsory paid maternity leave? Over this Government's dead body…
… the principal activities of which include the negotiation of rates of pay and conditions of employment for its members.
Unlawful conduct within one organisation must not be used as an excuse to impose unfair laws or an excessive compliance burden upon all registered organisations.
At the last minute, very late, even as late as Saturday night, we had an agreement, finally, from the federal government that they were prepared to amend the Education Act to confirm the autonomy of Victorian government schools.
When a Minister is occasionally unable to provide an immediate substantive answer, he or she may either undertake to supply the Member with the requested information in writing at a later date …
No, no, no. No, Minister, figures can be very confusing for people listening … if we can just confirm … you are planning to cut $230 million from the education budget over four years?
JENNIFER RANKINE: We have efficiency dividends over … four years …
That question is quite out of order and I ask the Leader of the Opposition to withdraw the end of the question.
Sorry, did you give me the call?
I said to withdraw the end of the question. It was unparliamentary.
That today, this Parliament, on behalf of the Australian people, takes responsibility and apologises for the policies and practices that forced the separation of mothers from their babies, which created a lifelong legacy of pain and suffering.
We acknowledge the profound effects of these policies and practices on fathers.
And we recognise the hurt these actions caused to brothers and sisters, grandparents, partners and extended family members.
We deplore the shameful practices that denied you, the mothers, your fundamental rights and responsibilities to love and care for your children. You were not legally or socially acknowledged as their mothers. And you were yourselves deprived of care and support.
To you, the mothers who were betrayed by a system that gave you no choice and subjected you to manipulation, mistreatment and malpractice, we apologise.
We say sorry to you, the mothers who were denied knowledge of your rights, which meant you could not provide informed consent. You were given false assurances. You were forced to endure the coercion and brutality of practices that were unethical, dishonest and in many cases illegal.
We know you have suffered enduring effects from these practices forced upon you by others. For the loss, the grief, the disempowerment, the stigmatisation and the guilt, we say sorry.
To each of you who were adopted or removed, who were led to believe your mother had rejected you and who were denied the opportunity to grow up with your family and community of origin and to connect with your culture, we say sorry.
We apologise to the sons and daughters who grew up not knowing how much you were wanted and loved.
We acknowledge that many of you still experience a constant struggle with identity, uncertainty and loss, and feel a persistent tension between loyalty to one family and yearning for another.
To you, the fathers, who were excluded from the lives of your children and deprived of the dignity of recognition on your children's birth records, we say sorry. We acknowledge your loss and grief.
We recognise that the consequences of forced adoption practices continue to resonate through many, many lives. To you, the siblings, grandparents, partners and other family members who have shared in the pain and suffering of your loved ones or who were unable to share their lives, we say sorry.
Many are still grieving. Some families will be lost to one another forever. To those of you who face the difficulties of reconnecting with family and establishing on-going relationships, we say sorry.
We offer this apology in the hope that it will assist your healing and in order to shine a light on a dark period of our nation's history.
To those who have fought for the truth to be heard, we hear you now. We acknowledge that many of you have suffered in silence for far too long.
We are saddened that many others are no longer here to share this moment. In particular, we remember those affected by these practices who took their own lives. Our profound sympathies go to their families.
To redress the shameful mistakes of the past, we are committed to ensuring that all those affected get the help they need, including access to specialist counselling services and support, the ability to find the truth in freely available records and assistance in reconnecting with lost family.
We resolve, as a nation, to do all in our power to make sure these practices are never repeated. In facing future challenges, we will remember the lessons of family separation. Our focus will be on protecting the fundamental rights of children and on the importance of the child's right to know and be cared for by his or her parents.
With profound sadness and remorse, we offer you all our unreserved apology.
The Government’s failure to implement real education reform.
Ms Greiner said that it was no good for the government to blindly match money without adhering to the principles that underpinned the original proposals by the Gonski panel.
So Tony Abbott and I made a decision … matching Labor's funding model dollar for dollar.
You can vote Liberal or Labor and you will get exactly the same amount of funding for your school.
Joint Select Committee on Constitutional Recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples—Senator Siewert.
Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters—Senator Rhiannon.
Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade—Senator Whish-Wilson.
Joint Standing Committee on Migration—Senator Hanson-Young.
Joint Standing Committee on the National Capital and External Territories—Senator Hanson-Young.
Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights—Senator Wright.
Higher Education Support Amendment (Savings and Other Measures) Bill 2013
Today the Government announced savings in the higher education portfolio that will contribute to the funding of school education reforms designed to ensure that all Australian school children get a flying start in life.
These are Labor's cuts. These cuts of April came on top of repeated attacks by Labor on support for universities, for students, and for research. These cuts show just how damaging to the university sector the previous government was. They show clearly that Labor is no friend to universities. They show that Labor is no friend of students or higher education.
As you would know the states in the end apply the model, but what the Commonwealth is doing means that no school, state or territory, can be worse off because of the Commonwealth's actions.
… you might actually find that some schools are worse off, courtesy of various state government decisions.
… digitally connected learning environments, including simulated learning and laboratory spaces, enabling new offerings in Allied Health and Nursing, Engineering and Construction and Education.
Australian Civilian Corps Amendment Bill 2013
This machinery of government change means that certain legislation will need to be updated to substitute references to AusAID and specific positions in AusAID with references to DFAT and positions in DFAT.
We have a great objective—the light on the hill—which we aim to reach by working for the betterment of mankind not only here but anywhere we may give a helping hand.
Now the borders around AusAID are being comprehensively breached and dismantled, probably beyond any possibility of easy reconstruction. While this is in the end just a ‘machinery of government’ change, it is inevitably experienced as an affront, a personal loss, to the people who have invested their working lives, or their hopes for a working life, in the organisation. The affront might have been lessened if there were a perception that this unheralded merger were not in reality a hostile takeover, if DFAT as agent were thought to be acting only in line with the objectives of the government as principal, and if the objectives of the merger had been convincingly stated. But, as it is, there is a sense that one organisation is being consumed by another whose objectives might not exactly coincide with those of the government. The government wants a focused, high-quality aid program that strengthens Australia’s bilateral relationships. It can’t be easy for anybody inside AusAID to see how its disintegration could serve that end.
Development assistance is one of the most important aspects of Australia's national policy. And I believe many Australians understand and value our aid program. Yet I'd also say that the range and the variety of assistance provided; the severity and complexity of the disadvantage alleviated; and the profound difference that is made to the lives of millions of people, in millions of ways is perhaps not fully appreciated. I would like to ensure that it is appreciated to a greater degree.
Australians naturally want to know that their taxpayers' dollars being spent through the aid program are making a real difference on the ground; a lasting difference; a transformative difference; and that those resources are not being wasted.
That is an entirely reasonable expectation and AusAID is delivering on that expectation, as found by the OECD peer review in May this year …
All of us in this room and this Agency know from experience the incredible difference that development assistance can make—that it saves lives; changes nations; and builds cooperation between societies, and that, dollar-for-dollar, well-targeted foreign aid contributes to stability and security at least as well as any government initiative, and I intend to make it part of my role to communicate that as much as possible to the Australian community.
I would also like to ensure that Australians understand that the need for development assistance is particularly acute in our part of the world. Of Australia's 24 closest neighbours, 22 of them are developing countries. Our interests and our prospects are deeply interwoven with the prospects of all the countries and all the people with whom we share this part of the planet and we have a responsibility to advocate for the development needs in our region, not only in relation to health, education and governance, but also in relation to infrastructure, gender-equality, disability-inclusion, human rights and climate change.
This imperative is made keener by the multilateral leadership opportunities before us in the next few years.
Higher Education Support Amendment (Savings and Other Measures) Bill 2013
The House divided. [20:16]
(The Deputy Speaker—Mrs Griggs)
That this bill be now read a third time.
Australian Civilian Corps Amendment Bill 2013
Australia, we do what we say.
That this bill be now read a third time.
Import Processing Charges Amendment Bill 2013
That this bill be now read a third time.
Telecommunications Legislation Amendment (Submarine Cable Protection) Bill 2013
That all the words after "That" be omitted with a view to substituting the following words:
"whilst not declining to give the bill a second reading the House notes that:
(1) in his Second Reading Speech, the Minister acknowledged:
(a) the importance of communications infrastructure to our economy; and
(b) the unforseen evolution of technology and services that could be facilitated using submarine communications cables when Australia's links were first developed in the nineteenth century;
(2) it is critical for policy makers to adopt a forward-looking view of our nation's communications and infrastructure requirements; and
(3) the assertion that broadband speeds of 25Mbps will continue to be sufficient for the needs of Australian households in future is inconsistent with items (1) and (2)."
Modern submarine cables typically provide multiple terabits per second of capacity when deployed and can be further upgraded, positioning them to meet future traffic demands.
… absolutely confident that 25 megabits per second is going to be enough—more than enough—for the average household.