What to look out for this Parliamentary sitting week #auspol

Parliament returns Tuesday, 2 February for the first sitting week of 2021 with both the House and Senate in session.

The initial focus will be on addressing issues in the aged care sector, technical amendments to export control and TGA amendments that allow greater autonomy to pharmacists to prescribe medicines without contravening state or territory laws.

This week will also see reform and amendments debated for the Financial Services, Telecommunications, Higher Education, Agriculture and Energy sectors.

House of Representatives

The House will resume debate Tuesday morning with the Aged Care Legislation Amendment (Serious Incident Response Scheme and Other Measures). It aims to implement a Serious Incident Response Scheme for residential aged care and flexible care and expand the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commissioner's powers to administer and enforce the requirements of the scheme and the responsibilities of approved providers and related offences. The legislation is designed to address issues raised in the Counsel Assisting’s final submissions to the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety.

The morning session will also debate the Export Control Amendment (Miscellaneous Measures), which will replace the existing Export Control Act 1982 and 16 other statutes, and is intended to provide a more streamlined, overarching framework for the regulation of exports. 

The afternoon will see debate of the Therapeutic Goods Amendment (2020 Measures No. 2) Legislation, which will allow pharmacists to substitute a different medicine for one that has been prescribed where there is a serious scarcity of the prescribed medicine as well as create regulations to establish a unique device identification database for the traceability and monitoring of medical devices in Australia. Following the House will discuss the National Redress Scheme for Institutional Sexual Abuse Amendment (Technical Amendments), The amendments will enable these efficiencies and clarifications to occur as early as possible, ensuring Scheme operations are improved where needed and ultimately support the management of applications for redress from survivors of institutional child sexual abuse.

Closing out the day’s debates will be Financial Sector Reform (Hayne Royal Commission Response No. 2). The legislation Amends the: Corporations Act 2001 to: require financial services providers that receive fees under an ongoing fee arrangement to: provide clients with a document each year which outlines the fees they will be charged and the services they will be entitled to in the following 12 months and which seeks annual renewal for all ongoing fee arrangements; and obtain written consent before fees under an ongoing fee arrangement can be deducted from a client’s account.

On Wednesday the House will begin reviewing the Australian Immunisation Register Amendment (Reporting) legislation which will Amend the Australian Immunisation Register Act 2015 to: require recognised vaccination providers to report certain information in relation to certain vaccinations administered both within and outside Australia; authorise the collection and use of Commonwealth assigned identifiers; introduce civil penalties should recognised vaccination providers not comply with the reporting requirements.

Following the House will debate the Telecommunications Amendment (Infrastructure in New Developments). The draft legislation Amends the Telecommunications Act 1997 to: extend the existing prohibition on developers who are constitutional corporations from selling or leasing a building lot or building unit in a new development unless fibre-ready facilities are installed in proximity to the lot or unit to all types of developers, whether incorporated or unincorporated. Wednesday Morning will also see debate of the Higher Education Support Amendment (Freedom of Speech) which amends the Higher Education Support Act 2003 to insert a new definition of ‘academic freedom’ and replace references to 'free intellectual inquiry' with the allied concepts of 'freedom of speech' and 'academic freedom'.

Wednesday’s afternoon debate will consider the Agriculture Legislation Amendment (Streamlining Administration), which amends the Biosecurity Act 2015 and Imported Food Control Act 1992 to enable computerised decision-making for certain process. Following the House will consider the Education Services for Overseas Students Amendment (Refunds of Charges and Other Measures). The purpose of the the Bill is to amend the Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000 (ESOS Act) to: provide for the Secretary to refund Commonwealth Register of Institutions and Courses for Overseas Students(CRICOS) charges in special circumstances from 1 July 2021 and change the definition of ‘course’, to allow certain education and training to be provided to overseas students without the need for CRICOS registration.

On Thursday morning, the House will debate VET Student Payment Arrangements (Miscellaneous Amendments). The Bill proposes minor amendments to the administrative arrangements for VET Student Loans (VSL) under the VET Student Loans Act 2016 (VSL Act) to clarify that VSL is not required to be paid to a provider in certain instances where a student’s debt would be cancelled and the provider would be required to repay the amount and automatically revoke the approval of a provider to offer Vet Student Loans if that provider ceases to be registered to provide VET. Following the House will consider the Customs Tariff Amendment (Incorporation of Proposals and Other Measures). The Bill Amends the Customs Tariff Act 1995 to: provide for a free rate of customs duty for certain medical and hygiene products between 1 February 2020 and 31 December 2020; as well as the removal of customs on a number of products including the $12 000 special customs duty on used and second-hand motor vehicles.

Finally, in the afternoon the House will debate the Clean Energy Finance Corporation Amendment (Grid Reliability Fund). The Bill Amends the Clean Energy Finance Corporation Act 2012 to establish the $1 billion Grid Reliability Fund to support investments in new energy generation, storage and transmission infrastructure, including eligible projects shortlisted under the Underwriting New Generation Investments program. The Bill will also establishes a new category of GRF investments, which are to be funded from this GRF Special Account; amends the definition of an “investment” to allow for additional types of investments; expand the definition of “low-emissions technology” to include certain types of gas-fired electricity generation.

Senate

The Senate will be in session from Tuesday afternoon, and begin with consideration of the Aged Care Legislation Amendment (Improved Home Care Payment Administration No. 2) Bill 2020, which amends the arrangements relating to the payment of home care subsidy to approved providers by providing that the Commonwealth will retain, on behalf of home care recipients, any subsidy that may be in excess of the care and services provided, to be drawn down as care and services are provided in future; and A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 to ensure that the supply of home care remains GST-free.

Native Title Legislation Amendment Bill 2020 will follow. The Bill amends the Native Title Act 1993 (Native Title Act) and the Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act 2006 (CATSI Act) to allow a native title claim or compensation group to impose conditions on the authority of its authorised applicant and require public notification of any such conditions and clarifies the duties of the applicant to the claim group. 

Next under review is the Crimes Legislation Amendment (Economic Disruption) Bill 2020. The Bill amends the: Criminal Code Act 1995 to update money laundering offences; Crimes Act 1914 to clarify that certain obligations imposed on investigating officials do not apply to undercover operatives; Proceeds of Crimes Act 2002 to: ensure that buy-back orders cannot be used by criminal suspects and their associates to buy back property forfeited to the Commonwealth or to delay court proceedings.

 Tuesday’s Government Business will conclude with the Customs Amendment (Product Specific Rule Modernisation) Bill 2019. The Bill amends the Customs Act 1901 to streamline the way in which product specific rules of origin of the Australia-Chile Free Trade Agreement, Australia-New Zealand Closer Economic Relations Agreement, Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement, Korea-Australia Free Trade Agreement, Malaysia-Australia Free Trade Agreement and Thailand-Australia Free Trade Agreement are given effect domestically.

Wednesday morning will see debate on aforementioned legislation carried in the House, including the Aged Care Legislation Amendment (Serious Incident Response Scheme and Other Measures) Bill 2020 and the Export Control Amendment (Miscellaneous Measures) Bill 2020.

The Senate will also consider the National Consumer Credit Protection Amendment (Mandatory Credit and Other Measures) Bill 2019. The bill amends the: National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009 to: establish a mandatory comprehensive credit reporting regime to apply from 1 April 2020; provide that a credit provider cannot refuse to provide further credit or reduce a customer's credit limit merely because financial hardship information exists; and provide for transitional arrangements; and Privacy Act 1988 to: permit reporting of financial hardship information within the credit reporting system; require the Attorney-General to cause an independent review and report of the credit reporting system before 1 October 2023; 

Rounding out the Government Business of the day will be the Higher Education Legislation Amendment (Provider Category Standards and Other Measures) Bill 2020. The Bill amends the: Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency Act 2011 to: implement the recommendations of the Review of the Higher Education Provider Category Standards; implement an outstanding recommendation of the Review of the impact of the TEQSA Act on the higher Reporting education sector to refer to the Threshold Standards as a single unified framework.

Thursday morning will see debate on aforementioned legislation carried in the House including the Therapeutic Goods Amendment (2020 Measures No. 2), and the National Redress Scheme for Institutional Sexual Abuse Amendment (Technical Amendments).

Thursday morning will also see consideration of the National Radioactive Waste Management Amendment (Site Specification, Community Fund and Other Measures) Bill 2020, which establishes a National Radioactive Waste Management Facility to permanently dispose of low level radioactive waste and temporarily store intermediate level radioactive waste by amending the National Radioactive Waste Management Act 2012 to: specify the site selected and enable the acquisition of additional land for the facility.

The Senate is also likely to consider the following Non-controversial legislation; the Designs Amendment (Advisory Council on Intellectual Property Response) Bill 2020, the Australian Immunisation Register Amendment (Reporting) Bill 2020 and the Telecommunications Amendment (Infrastructure in New Developments) Bill 2020.

A full list of legislation scheduled for debate is available here.