Karen Andrews (McPherson, Liberal Party, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Industry and Science) Share this | Hansard source

It is my great pleasure to indicate my support for this omnibus bill which represents the third repeal day in the life of this government and which clearly reflects our unwavering commitment to cutting red tape. I know that everyone on this side of the House remains excited and energised about the fact that while we are in office there will be two sitting days every year dedicated to repealing legislation and regulations. This is about removing unnecessary red tape that does not serve a positive purpose and only adds to the regulatory burden that individuals, businesses and community groups have to deal with. We were unequivocal during the 2013 election campaign—we made a commitment to cut red tape by $1 billion every year. So far, we are delivering that commitment in full, with the total deregulatory saving since September 2013 currently at $2.5 billion. This is a significant achievement and one that has a very real, positive impact on businesses, community organisations and families.

But, of course, there is much more to be done. Importantly, for the first time in our history, we have undertaken a thorough and accurate stock take of all federal regulatory costs, and we have embarked on an ongoing program to consistently measure and reduce the cost of government red tape. Under the former Labor government, Commonwealth regulation was costing Australians approximately $65 billion—a remarkable 4.2 per cent of GDP. Following these bills, the government will have repealed more than 10,300 legislative instruments and introduced legislation to repeal over 2,700 acts of parliament.

It is not about cutting red tape for the sake of it; the reason we are so determined to pursue the task of ongoing deregulatory savings is that our goal is to make life easier for Australians and to make it easier for businesses to decide to invest and create more jobs. Cutting red tape is about Australians spending less time in queues, filling out forms and searching for information.

In my electorate of McPherson on the southern Gold Coast I regularly hold listening posts. The most regular and common message I get when I am speaking to my constituents is that people want the government to make things simpler rather than more complicated. They want to be able to get on with their working lives and run their businesses or volunteer at the local charity or sporting club without having to wade through paperwork and having the burden of regulation make tasks that were originally simple much more difficult.

Members opposite used to brag when they were in government about the amount of legislation that was passed through the House. Indeed, in just over five years, Labor managed to introduce around 21,000 new regulations—but so much of it was unnecessary. As I said in the spring repeal debate last year, I am a firm believer in smaller government. I believe that the 'have a go' budget our government delivered is all about harnessing the drive and energy of our people, because they are the ones who will grow our economy and create a more cohesive society.

Governments are rarely the solution to any problem. We can help to create the right environment for individuals and businesses to thrive, but governments do not hold the answers. And the notion of big government solving problems—which seems to be the Labor mantra—is in my view a recipe for disaster.

The idea of smaller government is at the heart of the coalition's policy approach, and it is certainly reflected in these bills and in our commitment to ongoing repeal days. This will help ensure that, over time, the burden continues to be lifted and we streamline the work of government into the future. What is more, the coalition have a new approach with every piece of legislation or proposed regulation that we put forward. We must first ask, 'What is the purpose, cost and impact on productivity of the proposed initiatives?' before we regulate. Only after these questions are answered and only when it is absolutely necessary will we proceed to regulate.

I want to point out that, as part of the government's red-tape objective, portfolios and regulators are assessing opportunities for greater acceptance of international standards and risk assessments. If a system, service or product has been approved under a trusted international standard or risk assessment then the view is that our regulators should not impose any additional requirements for approval in Australia unless it can be demonstrated that there is a good reason to do so.

To ensure a thorough review of all regulations, ministers in all portfolios are seeking the views of key business and other stakeholders on each of their standards and risk assessment processes. Members of the public are being invited to submit examples of unnecessary divergences from international standards, on the Cutting Red Tape website. We recognise that this is very much an ongoing process, and we are inviting continued input from the community and from businesses.

I want to speak very briefly about the nature of the changes that we are discussing today. On top of delivering the biggest small-business package in our nation's history with the budget, we are also delivering some significant measures with this bill, including implementing easier monthly PAYG for certain businesses. Businesses choosing to use this method will only need to calculate their actual instalment income on a quarterly basis. This is expected to result in annual compliance savings of $2.7 million.

For transport and freight companies, we have removed the requirement for heavy vehicle operators of B-double truck combinations registered under the Federal Interstate Registration Scheme to fit additional spray suppression devices. This will save around $8.3 million each year.

We are also reforming the 457 visa program by streamlining the processing of sponsorship, nomination and visa applications; reforming sponsorship requirements to reduce the time and cost to businesses; increasing the sponsorship approval period from 12 to 18 months for start-up businesses; and providing greater flexibility in relation to English-language-testing and skill requirements. This is expected to result in savings of $29.9 million a year.

We are also making improvements to the ATO website so that six million Australians can find relevant information more quickly, resulting in compliance savings of $48.5 million. These are all measures that collectively ease the regulatory burden on businesses, and there will be many more to come.

This bill also improves the myGov online service to allow customers to update their details in one place and to obtain secure and convenient access to online services with a single account and one set of credentials. This is expected to generate savings of $5.4 million a year.

We are also making identity checks even easier for retailers and consumers when purchasing a new prepaid mobile phone, saving $6.2 million a year. And restrictions on using personal electronic devices have been lifted so travellers can use their PEDs during all phases of flight. This will deliver compliance savings of $17.7 million. These are just a few of the common-sense measures in this omnibus bill.

I note that within the portfolio of industry and science, of which I am parliamentary secretary, there are net savings of $56.05 million as part of this repeal day. These come from a variety of measures, including closing down programs that were no longer required or perhaps were duplicating services offered elsewhere. Our portfolio, like every other portfolio, is being asked to contribute to the task of deregulation, and we will certainly continue to do so.

The bottom line is that our government will continue to work its way through the tangle of red tape and regulation in order to deliver cost savings, which ultimately result in more-efficient government and more-productive business and not-for-profit sectors. This is good news for Australian industry, and it is also good news for the scientific sector, which I know sometimes feels the weight of regulatory burden. This will improve competitiveness, help create more jobs and also lower household costs, which is great news for my constituents on the southern Gold Coast, as it is for all Australians.

I am very proud to be part of a government which is very much focused on cutting red tape. As I indicated earlier in my speech, when I am in my electorate and I am speaking to my constituents, the single issue that they repeatedly raise with me is their concern about red tape slowing down their businesses and slowing down the work that they are doing in their communities and at charities. They have asked me as their representative to do everything that I possibly can to make sure that this government continues on the path of cutting red tape.

I certainly am very proud to be doing all that I can to cut red tape, and I call on all of the members of this House to do everything that they can to identify opportunities for red tape to be reduced for our businesses and our members of the community. It is one of the most important things that we as members of this House can do, and I certainly commend this bill to the House.

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