THE Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Works yesterday announced that it is inquiring into a proposal from the Department of Defence for the replacement aviation refuelling vehicles infrastructure.

The JP157 infrastructure project will deliver new and upgraded facilities to support the replacement and future aviation refuelling fleets. The Department of Defence proposes to undertake a range of works across 15 sites ranging from bunding works, fuel treatment system works, shelters, hardstand and access works, fencing and contamination works as required.

The estimated cost of the project is $40.4 million.

It is anticipated that the Committee will conduct public and in-camera hearings for the inquiry in January/February 2018. Further information on the public hearing will be available soon.

Full details on the project are available on the Committee’s website: www.aph.gov.au/pwc

The Committee would like to hear from all individuals or organisations interested in the inquiry.

Submissions will be accepted until 25 January 2018.

NB: The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Works is neither involved in the tendering process nor the awarding of contracts. Enquiries on those matters should be addressed to the Department of Defence.

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THE Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Works yesterday announced that it is inquiring into a proposal from the Department of Defence for the Engine Test Cell 1 Upgrade at RAAF Base Amberley.

The purpose of this project is to establish a fit-for-purpose engine test facility that satisfies both the ongoing Super Hornet and Growler and the new F-35 engine testing needs. The engine test facility at RAAF Base Amberley is Australia’s largest fast jet engine test facility and this project will extend the existing functionality to enable efficient kitting and testing of the Super Hornet, Growler and F-35 engines.

The estimated cost of the project is $23.7 million.

It is anticipated that the Committee will conduct public and in-camera hearings for the inquiry in January/February. Further information on the public hearing will be available soon.

Full details on the project are available on the Committee’s website: www.aph.gov.au/pwc

The Committee would like to hear from all individuals or organisations interested in the inquiry.

Submissions will be accepted until 25 January 2018.

NB: The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Works is neither involved in the tendering process nor the awarding of contracts. Enquiries on those matters should be addressed to the Department of Defence.

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THE Foreign Affairs and Aid Sub-Committee of the Parliament’s Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade has tabled the final report for the Committee’s inquiry into establishing a Modern Slavery Act in Australia.

The Committee’s report, Hidden in Plain Sight, makes 49 recommendations to improve Australia’s efforts to combat modern slavery here and around the world. Latest estimates suggest that over 40 million people around the world, including 4300 in Australia, are victims of some form of modern slavery, which includes human trafficking, slavery, debt bondage, forced labour and other slavery-like practices.

The Committee recommends that the Australian Government introduce a Modern Slavery Act in Australia similar to but improving on the UK Modern Slavery Act 2015. The Committee recommends that the proposed Act should establish an Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner and supply chain reporting requirements for entities operating in Australia. The Committee further recommends improvements to:

• support for victims (including a national compensation scheme);
• criminal justice responses (including training for frontline officials); and
• protections for workers vulnerable to exploitation (including changes to Australia’s visa framework and establishing a national labour hire licensing scheme).

The Committee heard particular concerns about ‘orphanage trafficking’ and also recommends a range measures to ensure that Australians do not perpetuate the exploitation of children in overseas orphanages through donations or tourism. This includes establishing a register of approved orphanages and a national awareness campaign on the risks of orphanage trafficking.

Chair of the Foreign Affairs and Aid Sub‑Committee, Mr Chris Crewther MP, said that “modern slavery describes some of the greatest crimes our time".

“This report highlights that modern slavery is often ‘hidden in plain sight’ across a range of industries in Australia and in the global supply chains of businesses and organisations operating here. An Australian Modern Slavery Act, as recommended by this report, will make a significant contribution to ensuring that, here in Australia, we are doing all we can to combat these crimes,” Mr Crewther said.  

The report is available from the Committee’s website: www.aph.gov.au/modernslavery.

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THE House of Representatives Standing Committee on Economics today presented its Third Report on reforming the Australian banking sector.

The report builds on the suite of important reforms previously recommended by the committee, which have been broadly adopted by the Government.

Key reforms to date include putting in place a one-stop shop for consumer complaints, the Australian Financial Complaints Authority; a regulated Banking Executive Accountability Regime; and, new powers and resources for the ACCC to investigate competition issues in the setting of interest rates.

The Government also adopted the committee's recommendations to establish an open data regime and change the regulatory requirement for bank start-ups in order to encourage more competition in the sector.

The Committee’s Third Report makes the following recommendations to Government:

• If the banks do not act by 1 April 2018, regulatory action should be taken to ensure that merchants have the choice of how to process “tap and go” payments on dual network cards.  At present merchants are forced to process these transactions through schemes such as Visa and MasterCard rather than eftpos.  It is estimated that this forced processing costs merchants hundreds of millions of dollars in additional annual fees at present;
• The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, as a part of its inquiry into residential mortgage products, should assess the repricing of interest-only mortgages that occurred in June 2017;
• The Government should introduce legislation to mandate the banks’ participation in Comprehensive Credit Reporting as soon as possible; and
• The Attorney-General should review the major banks’ threshold transaction reporting obligations in light of the issues identified in the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre’s (AUSTRAC) case against the Commonwealth Bank of Australia.

Committee Chair David Coleman MP said "the Committee continues to hold the major banks to account during these regular hearings.  We look forward to the Government’s response to the Committee’s new recommendations."

The report can be accessed from the Committee’s website. 

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THE House of Representatives Standing Committee on Communications and the Arts today presented its report on the Australian film and television industry. The committee has made 13 recommendations to ensure the future growth and sustainability of this sector.

The key recommendations are:

• a single harmonised producer offset of 30% for all Australian screen productions which is a 50% increase in the current rebate for television programs and non-cinematic features;
• an increase in the location offset from 16.5% to 30% to ensure that Australia can effectively compete for large-scale international productions;
• that subscription video on demand companies invest part of their revenue earned in Australia in new Australian content;
• that children’s content quotas be reformed in light of current viewing trends but continue to require quality Australian programs for children to be available across all platforms, particularly live-action drama;
• that the Government consider replacing all or part of the current hours-based quotas for new children’s content with a contestable fund to create quality Australian children’s programs into the future;
• that a minimum hours-based quota for first release children’s content be included in the ABC charter and that SBS show a minimum of 50% Australian content across all of its channels;
• that 10% of Screen Australia’s funding be earmarked for productions filmed outside of the Sydney and Melbourne metropolitan areas;
• that the Government remove the unnecessary red-tape obligation to consult the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance before permitting a foreign actor to work in Australia.

The Chair of the committee, Luke Howarth MP, said, "Australia’s film and television industry makes very important cultural and economic contributions to the nation. These proposed reforms will greatly enhance the growth and sustainability of this industry into the future.

"Technological advances have significantly changed the way Australians now access their screen content and the policy settings need to be updated to reflect this," added Mr Howarth.

The report can be accessed from the Committee’s website. 

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THE Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters will hold its first public hearing on matters relating to Section 44 of Australia’s Constitution tomorrow.

Committee Chair Senator Linda Reynolds said the hearing will provide the Committee with the opportunity to consider the complexities surrounding Section 44 of the Constitution and the types of possible action that can lead to greater stability in our Parliamentary system.

“Australians need to be assured all members of parliament are constitutionally eligible to serve and they must also have confidence in the processes leading to parliamentarians’ election,” Senator Reynolds said.

The Terms of Reference are available on the Committee’s website.

Submissions are now open and will close on 9 February 2018.  

The Committee will hear evidence from the Australian Electoral Commission, the Attorney General’s Department, and professors Anne Twomey, Graeme Orr and George Williams AO.

Public hearing details: 9.00 a.m., Friday, 8 December 2017, Committee Room 2R1, Parliament House, Canberra

The hearing will be broadcast live at aph.gov.au/live

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THE Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit has tabled its report on the Commonwealth Performance Framework.

Committee Chair Senator Dean Smith said that improving the Commonwealth performance framework, to improve line of sight between the use of public resources and the outcomes achieved by Commonwealth entities, has been a long-term focus of the Committee.

“To build on momentum in the implementation of the Commonwealth performance framework, the Committee has recommended that the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 be amended to enable mandatory annual audits of performance statements by the Auditor-General, with Commonwealth entities to be consulted on the implementation timeframe,” Senator Smith said.

“The Parliament and the Australian public would then receive the same assurance on non-financial performance reporting as on financial reporting, where an independent audit is mandatory.”

The Committee has also recommended that:

• the Australian National Audit Office considers conducting an audit of one complete Commonwealth performance reporting cycle;
• the Australian Government amends the PGPA Rule and guidance to clarify the functions and charter of Commonwealth entity audit committees to reflect their role in assurance of the appropriateness of performance reporting;
• the four audited Commonwealth entities from Audit Report No. 54 on 2016-17 Corporate Planning report back on how their senior management teams are working to further embed the corporate planning requirements in future cycles;
• the Department of Finance undertakes a more comprehensive monitoring and evaluation program for the ongoing implementation of the Commonwealth performance framework;
• the Australian Public Service Commission conducts a review on whether non-financial performance reporting and evaluation requires strengthening as a training and research discipline in consultation with other relevant agencies, and Finance reports back on progress in developing capacity training in this area; and
• Finance reports back on Commonwealth entity progress in implementing a more mature approach to risk management and ‘joined up’ government.

The Commonwealth performance framework, established under the PGPA Act, requires Commonwealth agencies to produce corporate plans, Portfolio Budget Statements and annual reports, including annual performance statements.

The Committee’s inquiry was based on the following Audit Reports:

• No. 58 (2016-17), Implementation of the Annual Performance Statements Requirements
• No. 6 (2016-17), Corporate Planning in the Australian Public Sector
• No. 31 (2015-16), Administration of Higher Education Loan Program Debt and Repayments

Interested members of the public may wish to track the committee via the website. 

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WITH more online shopfronts opening in Australia all the time, the House of Representatives Industry, Innovation, Science and Resources Committee will today begin collecting evidence for its inquiry into the impacts on local Australian businesses from global internet-based competition.

The Committee will hear from representatives from the Department of Industry, Innovation and Science at a public hearing in Canberra.

The Inquiry examines how Australian businesses, particularly in the retail and small business sectors, have responded to growing competition from global online companies and what effect this change has already had and will continue to have. The Committee is still accepting submissions addressing the terms of reference and will hold further hearings early in 2018.

Committee Chair Michelle Landry MP said that the Committee is looking forward to hearing from the Department of Industry, Innovation and Science to start the inquiry.

“As business increasingly moves online, especially in the retail field, it is important that Australia has the right policy settings so that local businesses can continue to compete,” Ms Landry said.

Ms Landry also noted that the inquiry follows on from the Committee’s recent inquiry into the social issues relating to automated vehicles.

“Technology is changing the way we do things, from buying groceries to driving to work. But these changes do not happen in a vacuum, which is why it’s important that the Committee consider some of the consequences and ensures that the parliament and the government can respond to them.”

Public hearing details: 10.45am – 11.30am, Wednesday 6 December, Committee Room 1R1, Parliament House, Canberra

The hearing will be broadcast live at aph.gov.au/live

Interested members of the public may wish to track the committee via the website. 

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