FEDERAL PARLIAMENT’s Public Accounts Committee has presented its report on five Australian National Audit Office reports from 2013-14:

• Audit Report No. 42, Screening of International Mail
• Audit Report No. 43, Managing Compliance with Environment Protection and   Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 Conditions of Approval
• Audit Report No. 48, Administration of the Australian Business Register
• Audit Report No. 50, Cyber Attacks: Securing Agencies’ ICT Systems
• Audit Report No. 52, Multi-Role Helicopter Program

Committee Chair Dr Andrew Southcott MP said that these are significant areas of public administration where the public and the Parliament want to see improved outcomes. They also involve important issues of public safety and security.

“Two key themes emerging from these reports were the importance of agencies taking an appropriate risk based approach and also, where appropriate, working cooperatively with other agencies and stakeholders to achieve common objectives,” Dr Southcott said.

The Committee’s report includes recommendations directed at:

• Australian Customs and the Department of Agriculture reviewing methods of screening international mail to ensure Australia conforms to international best practice, and strengthening cooperative arrangements with other countries regarding identification of illicit firearm shipments
• Commonwealth agencies achieving full compliance with required strategies and controls in the Australian Signal Directorate’s Information Security Manual, and increased scrutiny of this area
• increased scrutiny of the Department of Environment’s management of the EPBC Act compliance framework and new one-stop-shop arrangements, and improved performance reporting in this area
• the Department of Defence and the Defence Materiel Organisation publishing annual figures on Australian industry content in their acquisition and sustainment contracts
• the Australian Taxation Office and partner agencies working more closely together to reduce entry points for business interactions with government through the Australian Business Register, and providing more efficient registration and reporting mechanisms

Copies of the report and further information about the inquiry can be accessed via the Committee’s website at: www.aph.gov.au/jcpaa.

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PARLIAMENT's Joint Public Accounts and Audit Committee (JCPAA) will conduct a public hearing to examine the joint Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) and Defence Materiel Organisation (DMO) Major Projects Report (MPR) 2013-14.

Having opened the inquiry into the MPR on 18 December 2014, the Committee will now examine witnesses from the Department of Defence, the DMO and the ANAO in order to investigate further the issues raised by the report.

Committee Chair, Dr Andrew Southcott MP, said that major Defence equipment projects remain the subject of considerable parliamentary and public interest, in view of their high cost, contribution to national security and the challenges involved in completing them within budget, on time and to the required level of capability.

“This is the seventh MPR produced by the ANAO and DMO and the Committee remains committed to seeing that, when it comes to Defence procurement, Australian tax-payers’ money is being spent wisely,” Dr Southcott said.

“The JCPAA’s on-going work has been very important in the MPR’s development.  Our efforts actively contribute to greater efficiencies in terms of current Defence projects as well as helping inform government on the best way to approach new Defence acquisitions, such as the Future Submarine project.”

Further information about the Committee’s inquiry, including details on how to lodge a submission, are available on the Committee’s website at: www.aph.gov.au/jcpaa.

Details for the hearings are as follows:
Date and time Friday, 27 February 2015, 9.30am – 11.30am
Venue:  Committee Room 1R2, Parliament House, Canberra.

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THE Australian Retailers Association (ARA) Executive Director Russell Zimmerman today said NSW retailers were worried about higher taxes and underdevelopment of infrastructure proposed by State Labor.

Today NSW ARA member Judith McDonald met with NSW Treasurer Andrew Constance in her Parramatta store to tell the Treasurer small retailers wanted tax cuts and better infrastructure.

“Our NSW members appreciate NSW Labor is trying to come up with policies however, the rushed unconsidered announcements we are see being made weeks before the election will only damage small business and retailers in NSW through higher business taxes and less infrastructure being built,” Mr Zimmerman said.

“I am relieved we have a state government cutting business taxes and building better roads,” Judith McDonald said while at her Parramatta dive store.

“I have worked with NSW retailers for years trying to get taxes cut and better roads, now we could see that all reversed”, Ms McDonald said.

Meanwhile Russell Zimmerman said he would be encouraging small business and retailers to vote for any party who stood for lower business taxes, better roads and better trains.

“We have more happening in NSW since the early 2000s along with better retail sales in NSW than any other State and I would hate to see all of that go by the wayside,” Mr Zimmerman said.

The NSW ARA would be asking Mr Foley’s NSW Labor to reverse these bad announcements and explain what they will do to help business.

“The ARA has met with Treasurer Constance and Premier Baird whom have explained their pro business and retail policies, we are now waiting for NSW Labor to do the same," Mr Zimmerman said.

Since 1903, the Australian Retailers Association (ARA) has been the peak industry body representing Australia’s $265 billion retail sector, which employs over 1.2 million people. The ARA ensures retail success by informing, protecting, advocating, educating and saving money for its 5,000 independent and national retail members throughout Australia.

Visit www.retail.org.au or call 1300 368 041.

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PRESERVING Australia’s precious environment can be done more efficiently and effectively, according to the House of Representatives Standing Committee on the Environment, which today released the report of its inquiry into streamlining environmental regulation.

The Committee Chair, Mr Alex Hawke MP, said that it’s vitally important that we protect Australia’s unique, precious natural environment.

“That is something we all agree on. Australia has some very stringent environmental protection laws, and there is no suggestion that the preservation of the environment should be compromised in any way,” he said.

“Throughout the course of this inquiry, the committee found several instances where environmental laws were duplicative, confusing, overly onerous, or were clearly not delivering any environmental benefit. This sort of unnecessary environmental regulation, or ‘green tape’, serves only to hamper business, slow down the economy, and reduce investor confidence. And that doesn’t benefit anyone.”

Mr Hawke said the committee listened to what members of the public have told the inquiry.

“They have told us what is working, and what is not. They have told us what they would like to see changed and the committee has listened and made 13 recommendations to the government.”

The recommendations cover a range of environmental regulation, including energy-related laws, the listing of threatened species, improving the consistency of environmental laws between the different states and territories, reducing duplication, making environmental data more readily available, and making reporting requirements more user-friendly.

Other recommendations relate to the government’s ‘one stop shop’ proposal for environmental assessments and approvals, which will see state and territory governments assessing and giving final approval to development projects that fall under the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act.

“The committee has made some very good and very practical recommendations for changes, and I believe these will complement the federal government’s deregulation agenda nicely,” Mr Hawke concluded.

The Committee’s report is available online at: www.aph.gov.au/GreenTapeReport.

Further details about the inquiry, including submissions, terms of reference, and public hearing transcripts can be obtained from the Committee’s website at www.aph.gov.au/greentape.

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VECCI Chief Executive Mark Stone said VECCI welcomes the release of the Guidelines for Market-Led Proposals that will encourage the private sector to work with the Government to deliver innovative, job-creating projects. 

"The guidelines provide a transparent and robust process where private parties can directly approach Government with new ideas on infrastructure projects and services," Mr Stone said.

"The process provides a pathway for Government to either enter into exclusive negotiations with the proponent or take the project to market through an open tender process, while protecting the intellectual property of the proponent.

"The guidelines place a significant emphasis on uniqueness and will allow the Government to harness the expertise and ideas of the private sector to deliver projects that may not otherwise be available in the marketplace.

"The ability of proponents to meet with Department of Treasury and Finance officials prior to submitting a proposal is a welcome feature of the model. It will encourage early and constructive dialogue between the private and public sectors, and help reduce the cost of developing proposals."

The Victorian Employers' Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VECCI) is the most influential business body in Victoria, informing and servicing more than 15,000 members, customers and clients around the state.

vecci.org.au

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PEAK retail industry body the Australian Retailers Association (ARA) and research partner Roy Morgan Research said their pre-Christmas retail sales forecast of $45 billion has not only been met but exceeded.

Australian shoppers spent a whopping $45.2 billion in retail stores from 15 November – 24 December 2014.

ARA Executive Director Russell Zimmerman said the positive result (confirmed by ABS data) was an extremely encouraging sign for the retail industry.

“We are pleased to see that the ARA’s predicted figure of $45 billion was exceeded, despite reports of shoppers cutting it close to December 25^th to complete their Christmas shopping.

“The ARA has proudly partnered with Roy Morgan Research to deliver extremely accurate retail spend forecasts for a number of years now.

"In 2013 the ARA forecasted $42.2 billion would go through retail tills during the pre-Christmas trading period and this figure was later confirmed at an actual pre-Christmas spend of $43 billion. It’s encouraging to see our 2014 pre-Christmas figures were almost bang-on again.

“The retail industry can now enjoy a heightened sense of confidence leading into 2015 knowing that shoppers spent a significant $45.2 billion in the lead up to Christmas last year. The festive period can be an extremely stressful time for business owners and I’m sure they will all be relieved to know that Christmas 2014 has indeed been one of the most successful to date.

“The ARA looks forward to confirming the actual post-Christmas spend (26 December 2014 – 15 January 2015) in the next month or so,” Mr Zimmerman said. 
 
Since 1903, the Australian Retailers Association (ARA) has been the peak industry body representing Australia’s $265 billion retail sector, which employs over 1.2 million people. The ARA ensures retail success by informing, protecting, advocating, educating and saving money for its 5,000 independent and national retail members throughout Australia.

Visit www.retail.org.au or call 1300 368 041

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LORD MAYOR Clover Moore will host the City of Sydney’s inaugural Future Asia Business Luncheon, a forum which aims to give the Sydney business community an insight into emerging business opportunities across Asia.

The CEO of Austrade, Bruce Gosper, will give a presentation about how local businesses can benefit from Australia’s new free trade agreements with China, Japan and Korea.
 
More than 140 business and government representatives will attend the event, which is part of the City’s annual Chinese New Year Festival.
 
 
WHEN:                       12pm on Tuesday 24 February 2015
 
WHERE:                     The Vestibule, Sydney Town Hall – 483 George Street, Sydney
 
CONTACT:                Keeley Irvin – 0448 005 718 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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THE Australian Retailers Association (ARA) is appalled by false union claims suggesting the Fair Work Commission (FWC) found no evidence linking employment levels to penalty rates.

ARA Executive Director Russell Zimmerman said the ACTU’s claim that the FWC found no evidence that cutting penalty rates leads to employers hiring more staff is completely untrue.

“It is common knowledge that the FWC said last year (during its decision to reduce the Sunday penalty rate for restaurant industry workers) the Sunday penalty rate ‘would have some effect on employment’.

“The ARA is aware that many large retail chains have been closing as many stores as possible on Sundays and public holidays to avoid paying penalty rates.

“Unrealistic penalty rates have made many businesses unviable over the last year. The ACTU has chosen to ignore this sad reality.

“There’s no denying the fact that retailers would employ more staff if they did not have to pay penalty rates. However, seeking to be the voice of reason, the ARA is not calling for penalty rates to be abolished altogether but there is a strong need to get the balance right. Only then can retailers operate competitively on weekends and offer increased employment opportunities,” Mr Zimmerman said.
 
Since 1903, the Australian Retailers Association (ARA) has been the peak industry body representing Australia’s $265 billion retail sector, which employs over 1.2 million people. The ARA ensures retail success by informing, protecting, advocating, educating and saving money for its 5,000 independent and national retail members throughout Australia.

Visit www.retail.org.au or call 1300 368 041.

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