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Maritime Transport and Offshore Facilities Security Amendment (Security
Plans and Other Measures) Bill 2006
Introduction
1.1
The Maritime Transport and Offshore Facilities Security
Amendment (Security Plans and Other Measures) Bill 2006 (the bill) was introduced
into the House of Representatives on 29
March 2006. On 11 May 2006,
the bill was referred to the Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport
Legislation Committee (the committee) on the recommendation of the Senate
Selection of Bills Committee.
1.2
The Selection of Bills Committee noted as issues for
consideration the effectiveness and impact of the bill to:
- enhance security against terrorism,
- operate fairly on Australian workers and industry and
- provide a better forum for community/industry feedback.[1]
Conduct of the inquiry
1.3
The inquiry was advertised in The Australian on 16 and 24
May 2006. The committee also wrote directly to a number of peak
bodies seeking their comments on the provisions of the bill. The committee
received two submissions (see Appendix 1).
1.4
The committee held a public hearing in Canberra
on 26 May 2006 and heard
evidence from officers of the Department of Transport and Regional Services (see
Appendix 2).
1.5
All the evidence presented to the committee is
available on the committee's web site at http://www.aph.gov.au/Senate/committee/rrat_ctte/index.htm
Acknowledgments
1.6
The committee appreciates the time and effort of those
who provided oral and written submissions to the inquiry. Their work has assisted
the committee considerably in its inquiry.
Purpose of the Bill
1.7
The purpose of the bill is to:
- amend the
Maritime Transport and Offshore Facilities Security Act 2003 (the Act):
- to simplify the procedures for making changes to
maritime, ship and offshore facilities security plans;
- to clarify measures relating to the plan
approval process;
- to make a number of technical amendments to
clarify the intent of the Act;
- to make amendments to various Acts consequential
to the enactment of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003; and
- to make a technical amendment to the Customs Act 1901.[2]
1.8
The Maritime
Transport and Offshore Facilities Security Act 2003:
- implements a preventative security regime to
enhance security at posted, terminals, offshore facilities and on board ships –
giving effect to Australia's international obligations under the International
Maritime Organisations' International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS)
Code; and
- establishes a regulatory framework to safeguard
against unlawful interference with maritime transport or offshore facilities by
developing security plans for ships, other maritime transport operations and
offshore facilities.[3]
Provisions of the bill
1.9
Maritime, ship and offshore security plans play an
integral role in terms of maritime security. The bill introduces measures in
relation to the submission and approval of security plans and aims to
streamline the plan approval process and make it easier to submit changes to
security plans.
Schedule 1
1.10
Schedule 1 of the Bill
amends the Act, to simplify the plan approval process and procedures for the
establishment of security zones, shorten the time for plan approvals, change
the contact details for security officers and clarify when the plan approval
period commences.
1.11
Schedule 1 contains the following provisions:
- A maritime, ship or offshore security plan for a
maritime industry participant must designate by name or reference to a
position, all security officers responsible for implementing or maintaining
security plans;
- A maritime industry participant may submit a
variation to a maritime, ship or offshore security plan that is currently in
force;
- Merely giving a copy of a security plan to the
Secretary does not constitute giving a revised plan. A maritime industry participant
may, by written notice to the Secretary, request the Secretary approve another
security plan (the revised plan);
- The Secretary may request further information
from the maritime industry participant before the security plan is approved;
- The consideration period for the Secretary to
approve a maritime, ship or offshore security plan is 60 days commencing on the
day the Secretary receives the security plan, extendable by up to 45 days to
accommodate the receipt of further information that may be requested;
- Where a port or offshore security zone has not
yet been established by the Secretary, a maritime security plan must be
accompanied by a map, and an offshore security plan must be accompanied by
information that shows each zone that the participant proposes;
- Where the Secretary has given a notice to a
maritime industry participant approving a maritime or offshore security plan,
and that security plan is accompanied by a map or information showing the
security zones proposed to be established, the Secretary is taken to have given
the participant a notice establishing the maritime or offshore security zones
as proposed in the plans; and
- A person appointed by the Secretary who is
engaged by a recognised security organisation for a security regulated Australian
ship or an Australian ship regulated as an offshore facility, has a
responsibility to report maritime transport or offshore facility incidents to
the Department.[4]
Schedule 2
1.12
Schedule 2 of the bill contains technical amendments to
a number of Acts administered by the Transport and Regional Services portfolio
(relating to legislative instruments) as a consequence of the enactment of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.
1.13
These amendments are included in the bill to reduce the
size of the Legislative Instruments
(Technical Amendments) Bill 2005.
Schedule 3
1.14
Schedule 3 of the bill contains an amendment to the Customs Act 1901.
1.15
The reference to the Maritime Transport Security Act 2003 in paragraphs 15(1A)(a) and
(b) were not updated when the short title of the Act changed in 2005. Item 1,
Schedule 3, provides an update to those references so that the relevant
paragraphs refer to the 'Maritime
Transport and Offshore Facilities Act 2003'.[5]
Consideration by the Senate Scrutiny of Bills Committee
1.16
The Senate Standing Committee for the Scrutiny of Bills
has a standing brief to consider all bills as to whether they trespass unduly
on personal rights and related matters, and draw attention to any bill which
seeks to have retrospective impact.
Examination
of the Maritime Transport and Offshore Facilities Security Amendment (Security
Plans and Other Measures) Bill 2006
1.17
In its examination of the Maritime Transport and
Offshore Facilities Security Amendment (Security Plans and Other Measures) Bill
2006, the Scrutiny Committee identified the following area of possible concern
in relation to the bill:
Retrospective
commencement –Schedule 2, items 31 and 32, Schedule 3
Items 31 and 32 of Schedule 2 propose amendments to Interstate Road Transport Act 1985. Item
31 amends section 34 to clarify that the Minister's declaration of a federal
road safety standard is a legislative instrument and item 32 amends section 35
to remove references to sections of the Acts
Interpretation Act 1901 and to the Statutory
Rules Publication Act 1903. By virtue of item 4 in the table to subclause
2(1) of this bill, these amendments would commence retrospectively immediately
after the commencement of sections 34 and 35 of the Interstate Road Transport Act 1985.
While the explanatory memorandum does not provide a reason for
this retrospectivity, it does include an explanation of the technical nature of
the amendments on page 22. The amendments are intended to ensure that the 1985
Act is expressed in a way that is consistent with the Legislative Instruments Act 2003 and make no change to the
substantive law.
Similarly, item 6 in the table to subclause 2(1) of this bill
provides that the amendment to the Customs
Act 1901 proposed in Schedule 3 would commence retrospectively on 27 June
2005, immediately after the commencement of item 2 of Schedule 1 to the Maritime Transport Security Amendment Act
2005. In this case, the explanatory memorandum states, on page 32, that the
amendment is technical and merely updates a cross-reference but makes no change
to the substantive law.[6]
1.18
Having raised those issues, the Scrutiny Committee
noted that it would make 'no further comment on this provision'.[7]
Issues raised at the hearing
1.19
At its public hearing, the committee sought
clarification from the department on the mechanisms in the bill to enhance
security in the face of the transient workforce on wharves at major ports and
on how the provisions of the bill would be enforced. The department's response
was that the regulations flowing from the bill would be specific enough to deal
with those issues.
1.20
The committee also expressed concern about the need to
make absolutely sure of the security of emails communicating the change of
contact details of designated port security officers to the department.
Recommendation
The committee recommends that the bill be passed without amendment.
Senator the Hon.
Bill Heffernan
Chair
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