Bills Digest no. 43 1976
Customs Amendment Act (No. 2) 1976
WARNING:
This Digest was prepared for debate. It reflects the legislation as
introduced and does not canvass subsequent amendments. This Digest
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Bill.
CONTENTS
Passage History
Provisions
Implications
Contact Officer & Copyright Details
Passage History
Customs Amendment Act (No.
2) 1976
Date introduced: 11 November
1976
House: House of Representatives
Provisions
This Bill proposes 2 unrelated
amendments to the Customs Act 1901:
(a) it will redefine cannabis plants as plants of the genus
cannabis not of the genus cannabis sativa as at
present;
(b) it will implement the Agreement on Trade and Commercial
Relations between the Australian and Papua New Guinea Governments
by making special provision for Papua New Guinea goods in Section
151 of the Act which specifies the circumstances in which goods
from overseas countries are to be treated as manufactures of such
countries.
At present no special provision is
made for goods of Papua New Guinea origin. There is a special
provision regarding New Zealand goods and a general provision that
goods not wholly manufactured in a foreign country are to be
treated as manufactures of the country if the following conditions
are satisfied
(i) the last process of manufacture was performed in the
country;
(ii) not less than three quarters of their cost is made up of
local or Australian labour or materials except in the case of goods
notified in the Gazette where the proportion is one quarter.
The proposed special provision will
treat goods partly manufactured in Papua New Guinea as manufactures
of that country if at least one half of their cost is made up of
local or Australian labour or materials except in the case of goods
notified in the Gazette where the proportion will be lower.
Implications
(a) Since the definition cannabis sativa was inserted in the
Customs Act in 1971, overseas research has led to a theory that
cannabis sativa is a species of the genus cannabis, and not itself
a genus. Thus, in some prosecutions there has been doubt as to
whether the definition cannabis sativa applied to the plant
material produced in Court.
(b) Since 1926, Australia has allowed special duty free entry of
Papua New Guinea products. At the present time, 95% of Australian
imports from Papua New Guinea enter free of duty. The proposed
amendment seeks to permit greater flexibility in encouraging the
expansion and diversification of trade between the member countries
of the Agreement.
Education and Welfare Group
17 November 1976
Bills Digest Service
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ISSN 1328-8091
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