Dear Mr Murphy

Thank you for your letter of 16 March 2011 regarding a petition submitted for consideration of the Standing Committee on Petitions, regarding medical practitioner Dr Rajendra Moodley.

The Australian Government values the significant contribution made by overseas trained doctors in the delivery of health services in Australia, particularly in rural and remote areas.

The National Registration and Accreditation Scheme (NRAS) for health professions commenced on 1 July 2010 and is the result of an agreement between the state, territory and Commonwealth governments, through the Council of Australian Governments, to align the previously disparate state and territory registration schemes for health practitioners. Key aims of the NRAS include increasing public safety and providing mobility for health practitioners.

While the NRAS is a national scheme, it operates independently of the Commonwealth. It is a joint initiative of the state, territory and Commonwealth governments, undertaken through the Council of Australian Governments. Oversight of the operation of the Scheme is provided by the Australian Health Workforce Ministerial Council (the Ministerial Council), which consists of Health Ministers from the state, territory and Commonwealth governments.

Under the NRAS, there is a single national registration board for each participating health profession. Members of a national board discharge their responsibilities under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law Act 2009, known as the National Law. The national boards are supported in their role by the Australian Health Practitioner Regulatory Authority (AHPRA), an independent statutory agency. It is not appropriate for me to intervene directly in the workings of either the national boards or AHPRA.

Under the NRAS, the previous state and territory medical registration boards have been replaced by a single national board, the Medical Board of Australia (MBA). The MBA has responsibility for the registration of medical practitioners; development of professional standards for medicine; handling notifications and complaints; and the assessment of overseas trained practitioners.

As you may be aware, an application for registration passes through stages which may include various tests or examinations. Following that process a recommendation is then made by AHPRA to the MBA.

Should a medical practitioner be refused renewal of his or her registration by the MBA, an appeals process is available. The process is set out under Part 8, Division 13 of the National Law.

I note from the AHPRA website that Dr Moodley is registered to practise. Dr Moodley has a condition placed on his registration ' limited to practise only in an area of need position under supervision arrangements approved by the Medical Board. '

I trust that the above information is of assistance.

from the Minister for Health and Ageing, Ms Roxon

Dear Mr Murphy

Thank you for your letter of 23 May 2011, on behalf of the Standing Committee on Petitions, concerning a petition from a group of citizens regarding the National School Chaplaincy Program.

The Australian Government believes it is important that our schools provide a supportive environment for the wellbeing of students and their families. The National School Chaplaincy Program is one of many successful initiatives that have been effective in supporting schools in providing for the wellbeing of school students.

In response to the positive feedback received about the Program, the Australian Government confirmed in the recent 2011-2012 Federal Budget, further funding of $222 million for the National School Chaplaincy Program. This will support up to an additional 1000 schools from the beginning of 2012 and enable all schools currently funded under the Program to be extended to 2014. The additional 1000 places include schools in disadvantaged, rural and remote communities.

In line with the above announcement, we are continuing with the Program review which commenced in 2010, considering how the Program can best support schools in the future. The public consultation phase of this review closed on 18 March 2011 with more than 7000 responses from schools, stakeholders and the broader community.

Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations staff are working to consolidate public input for consideration in future Program options. Issues such as strengthened Program Guidelines, qualifications for chaplains, appropriate standards for providers, and expansion of the Program to include secular support services are among the issues raised in the Public Discussion Paper. The outcome of the Program review will be released later in the year.

Further information and updates about the Program are available at www.deewr.gov.au/schoolchaplaincy. School Principals and funding recipients will receive further information regarding the extension when it is available.

Thank you for writing on this matter.

from the Minister for School Education, Early Childhood and Youth, Mr Garrett

Dear Mr Murphy

Australia Post — petition to request a street posting box in Falcon, Western Australia

Thank you for your letter dated 12 May 2011 concerning a petition submitted for the Committee's consideration regarding a request for a street posting box at the Miami Village Shopping Centre in Falcon, Western Australia.

Under the Australian Postal Corporation Act 1989 Australia Post is responsible for the day-to-day running of the organisation, including all decisions relating to the postal network. As a Government Business Enterprise, Australia Post does not receive any funding from taxpayers and, as far as practicable, it is required to perform its functions in a manner consistent with sound commercial practice.

Australia Post has noted that its policy concerning the provision of street posting boxes takes into account the general increased mobility of the population, constant demographic changes, shifts in posting habits and Australia Post's Community Service Obligation commitment to offer reasonable postal network access to its customers.

The policy provides that in capital city metropolitan areas and provincial cities, a street posting box facility will be provided at or near all postal outlets. In addition, street posting boxes will be provided so that residents have access to a lodgement point within two kilometres. In providing posting facilities, Australia Post gives preference to sites where adequate postings can be anticipated.

Australia Post has advised that there are three street posting boxes within a reasonable distance of the Miami Village Shopping Centre:

Australia Post acknowledges the points outlined in the petition presented by the local community but, based on the existing level of demand in the area, it considers that the reasonable posting needs of the local community are being met by the current spread of posting facilities and that the provision of an additional posting box cannot be justified at this time. Australia Post will continue to monitor postage services in the Falcon area to ensure that additional services are provided as the need arises.

However, Australia Post has also advised that residents are able to hand small quantities of their fully prepaid outgoing mail to the local postal delivery officer for posting.

I trust this information will be of assistance.

from the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Senator Conroy

Dear Murphy

Thank you for your letter of 25 May 2011 forwarding to me a petition submitted to the Standing Committee on Petitions about restrictions on commercial and recreational fishing in Australian waters.

I note that the concerns about marine reserves and potential restrictions on commercial and recreational fishing in waters off New South Wales seem to relate to the state marine park process rather than the Commonwealth marine bioregional planning process.

The Australian Government is committed to a clear and transparent process involving broad consultation and engagement with all stakeholders to help identify areas that are important for commercial and recreational marine users.

The Commonwealth marine bioregional planning process that will determine the marine reserve network for Commonwealth waters (usually three nautical miles from shore) is principally a matter for the Hon. Tony Burke MP, Minister for Sustainability, Environment, Water and Population—except for Great Barrier Reef Marine Park matters, which are managed by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority.

It is expected that those marine users, including commercial, recreational and charter fishers, who could be displaced will be consulted and treated fairly should there be unavoidable impacts as a result of the bioregional planning process. The government's policy also provides for various zoning arrangements, including multiple-use zones, that will allow commercial and recreational fishing activities that are compatible with habitat protection to continue.

Minister Burke recently announced a proposed marine reserve network for Commonwealth waters in the south-west region. The release of the east marine bioregional plan and associated marine reserves is scheduled for later this year. Information on marine bioregional planning and the proposed reserve system is available at www.environment.gov.au/coasts /mbp/index.html.

I have also been advised that areas for further assessment have been identified in the east marine region to gather more information on biological, physical and socioeconomic uses. This process will help to narrow down the areas where marine reserves may be established.

Thank you for bringing this petition to my attention. I trust you will find this information of assistance.

from the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Senator Ludwig

Dear Mr Murphy

Thank you for your letter of 23 May 2011 concerning the school and workplace bullying petition recently submitted for the consideration of the Standing Committee on Petitions. My response will only address matters relating to the issue of workplace bullying. I understand that the Hon Peter Garrett AM MP, Minister for School Education, Early Childhood and Youth is providing a response to the petition regarding matters within his portfolio. I apologise for the delay in responding.

The Australian Government considers that workplace bullying and a workplace culture that allows harassment and bullying to occur is unacceptable and should not be tolerated in any Australian workplace. As well as affecting the individual employee and other workers and their families, it can result in other undesirable outcomes such as absenteeism, increased staff turnover and loss of productivity.

Although most current work health and safety laws do not specifically address workplace bullying, all occupational health and safety (OHS) Acts impose legal responsibilities on both employers and employees. For example, under section 16 of the Occupational Health and Safety Act 1991 (Cth) employers must take all reasonably practicable steps to protect the health and safety of the employer's employees. This duty of care requires employers to take proactive steps to identify those hazards with the potential to affect the health and safety of their employees and to implement measures to eliminate or control the risks arising from those hazards. The duty extends to psychosocial hazards in the workplace including bullying behaviours.

In terms of future workplace safety laws, the harmonisation of Work Health and Safety (WHS) laws is a priority area of regulatory reform. All governments have committed to adopt uniform WHS laws by 1 January 2012, complemented by nationally consistent approaches to compliance and enforcement.

Safe Work Australia, an independent body representing each jurisdiction, unions and industry, was established to drive the development and implementation of these model WHS laws (comprising of a model act, supported by model WHS regulations and model codes of practice). The model WHS Act will cover bullying under its general provisions, and criminal penalties will apply for certain offences under the Act.

Safe Work Australia is currently working on a package of draft model regulations and draft priority codes of practice to support the agreed model Act. Safe Work Australia have indicated to the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations that it is currently in the process of drafting a code of practice on the subject of workplace bullying, including a section on violence in the workplace.

All codes will be available for public comment in the future prior to implementation. These codes form part of the model WHS laws which jurisdictions have committed to implement.

The model codes of practice aim to provide practical guidance to duty holders on how to meet the requirements under WHS legislation. Once implemented, these codes of practice will be approved under each jurisdiction ' s WHS Act. Approved codes of practice are admissible in court proceedings under the WHS Act and regulations. Courts may regard a code of practice as evidence of what is known about a hazard, risk or control and may rely on the code in determining what is reasonably practicable in the circumstances to which the code relates. This means that a code of practice relating to workplace bullying would be able to be used as evidence in proceedings for an offence under the WHS Acts in all Australian jurisdictions. This reflects the Government's commitment to ensuring that workers across Australia have the same WHS protections wherever they reside.

I appreciate you bringing this petition to my attention and trust this information is of assistance to the Committee and petitioners.

from the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations, Senator Evans

Dear Mr Murphy

Thank you for your letter of 23 May 2011 concerning the school and workplace bullying petition recently submitted for the consideration of the Standing Committee on Petitions. My response addresses matters raised in the petition relating to the School Education, Early Childhood and Youth portfolio. Your petition has also been forwarded to Senator Chris Evans, Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations, to respond to matters relating to bullying in the workplace.

The Australian Government takes issues of bullying seriously and believes student and workplace wellbeing and safety are essential for education and career success. All Australians should be able to learn and work in safe and supportive environments. The Government is committed to ensuring the wellbeing and resilience of all schoolchildren. Planning is underway to begin work to develop a national approach to building student resilience and wellbeing. This work recognises that schools play a vital role in promoting the intellectual, physical, social, emotional, moral, spiritual and aesthetic development and wellbeing of young Australians, and in ensuring the nation's ongoing economic prosperity and social cohesion.

You would be aware that state and territory governments have responsibility for the provision of education in their respective jurisdictions. Whilst the Government provides funding to state and territory governments for the provision of education, the Government does not currently legislate for the day to day operation of individual schools. The introduction of legislation to deal with school bullying may be better addressed by seeking the agreement of state and territory governments to amending their existing education legislation.

Quite separately, there are state, territory and Australian Government laws in place that deal with industrial relations, occupational health and safety, and discrimination.

As noted in the petition, there is often a direct link between bullying and sexual harassment. I am pleased to note that amendments introduced by the Attorney-General which strengthen the protections against sexual harassment for students in the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 were passed by Parliament on 24 May 2011. They will enter into force upon receiving Royal Assent.

The changes will extend the prohibition on sexual harassment in schools to protect students under the age of 16 from harassment by adult students. They will also provide for the first time protection for students from harassment by adult students and staff from other institutions during inter-school events such as sports carnivals and school formals.

Importantly, this means that all students will be better protected from sexual harassment, whether it occurs in the schoolyard, online or through covert forms of bullying, such as text messaging.

As part of a national approach to supporting schools to build, safe school communities, the Government has collaborated with state and territory education authorities to review and launch the revised National Safe Schools Framework.

The revised Framework was endorsed by all ministers for education through the Ministerial Council for Education, Early Childhood Development and Youth Affairs in December 2010. The Framework provides Australian schools with a vision and a set of guiding principles to assist whole school communities to develop positive and practical student safety and wellbeing policies. The vision includes creating learning environments which are free from all forms of bullying, harassment, aggression and violence.

The Framework's whole of school approach to creating safe and supportive learning and teaching communities acknowledges the strong interconnections between student safety, student wellbeing and learning. It emphasises the need for teachers to have appropriate training in positive student management and the need for schools to respond to incidents as they occur. It also acknowledges the role of parents and carers and includes ways for them to become involved with their child's school and continuously promote a safe school environment. By involving this important group of people, a whole school community approach to promoting safe schools can be established.

I proudly launched the revised Framework on 18 March 2011 on the inaugural National Day of Action Against Bullying and Violence. On this day, the Framework and the online supporting resource manual were made available to all Australian schools. Further information about the National Safe Schools Framework is available at: www.safeschools.deewr.gov.au.

As part of the National Day of Action, an online social networking campaign, Take a Stand Together, went live at www.takeastandtogether.gov.au. This campaign focuses on bystander behaviour and raises awareness of how students can take positive action against bullying.

The Government has also worked with state and territory education authorities to develop the Bullying. No Way! website at www.bullyingnoway.com.au. This interactive website provides valuable information for parents, students and teachers on strategies to address bullying, harassment and violence.

The Government continues to work closely with the states and territories and non-government education authorities through the Australian Education, Early Childhood Development and Youth Affairs Senior Officials Committee (AEEYSOC) Safe and Supportive School Communities working group to continue to develop clear and agreed national objectives to address bullying and violence in schools, and more broadly, approaches to student resilience and wellbeing.

I appreciate you bringing the petition to my attention.

from the Minister for School Education, Early Childhood and Youth, Mr Garrett

Dear Mr Murphy

Thank you for your letter of 30 May 2011 regarding a petition submitted for the consideration of the Standing Committee on Petitions by the citizens of New South Wales and citizens of all other state and territories, concerning access to the supply of Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) medicines by an approved pharmacist.

I note that Airport Guardian Pharmacy was not approved to supply medicines subsidised under the PBS as it is not the required distance from the nearest approved pharmacy, as specified in the Pharmacy Location Rules (the Rules). The purpose of the Rules is to ensure that all. Australians have access to medicines subsidised under the PBS through an effective, efficient and well-distributed community pharmacy network.

In certain situations I have a discretionary power to approve a pharmacist to supply PBS medicines under the National Health Act 1953 (the Act) where the application of the Rules will result in a community being left without reasonable access to PBS medicines, and it is in the public interest to do so. As you are aware, the pharmacists of Airport Guardian Pharmacy requested that I exercise my discretionary power and approve the supply of PBS medicines at the pharmacy.

In deciding whether the community has reasonable access to the supply of pharmaceutical benefits I examined a range of factors including why the pharmacists ' application did not satisfy the requirements of the Rules, the characteristics and circumstances of the travellers and workers of the Sydney Airport, Terminal 2, the community ' s current level of access to the supply of pharmaceutical benefits and other factors that were relevant to this matter.

In this instance, I have made my decision in relation to Airport Guardian Pharmacy ' s application, in accordance with the required statutory timeframes. There are no provisions in the Act for me to reconsider my decision.

I trust that the above information is of assistance.

from the Minister for Health and Ageing, Ms Roxon

Dear Mr Murphy

Thank you for your letter of 27 May 2011 regarding a petition submitted for the consideration of the Standing Committee on Petitions about nursing home care and bed funding.

I note that the petition was presented by the Member for Petrie, Mrs Yvette D'Ath MP, on 26 May 2011. Under Standing Order 209 (b), as the Minister responsible for the administration of the matter raised in the petition, I am responding within 90 days of its presentation.

The Australian Government is committed to ensuring that older people receive high quality care and an appropriately skilled and motivated workforce is a key part of this. It recognises that aged care workers provide an invaluable service in the care of older people and will be an integral part of meeting the challenges of responding to the care needs of an ageing population. The Government recognises that a sustainable aged care sector is essential to this commitment. That is why it has budgeted more than $54.2 billion to support the aged care needs of older Australians over the next four years from 2011-12.

Good faith collective bargaining at the enterprise level is at the heart of the Government's new workplace relations system. These workplace reforms have delivered a framework that provides greater opportunities for all workers, including aged care workers, to negotiate enterprise agreements that improve wages and conditions as well as workplace productivity and flexibility. Employees such as aged care workers who have previously had limited access to multi-employer bargaining will be able to benefit from the Government's low-paid bargaining stream which encourages a cooperative approach to workplace relations.

While the Government has an overarching role as funder of programs and services, aged care providers are responsible together with their staff to negotiate wages and conditions. The pay rates for workers are often negotiated through collective agreements and can vary from employer to employer, just as they do for nurses working in hospitals.

Under the Aged Care Act 1997, aged care providers are responsible for ensuring that there are adequate numbers of appropriately skilled staff to meet the individual care needs of residents. The number of staff that is appropriate for a given number of aged care recipients will vary across aged care homes and change according to the mix of residents' needs in that home. The required ratio of staff to residents and the required skills sets of staff are influenced by factors such as the nature of the care and service needs of residents, the nature of the buildings, the way the work is organised and the extent to which some services are conducted in-house or are outsourced.

The Government recognises that there are challenges facing the aged care sector and that reform is essential to build a more sustainable system that older Australians can rely on, providing high quality, affordable care into the future.

The Prime Minister, the Hon Julia Gillard MP, has identified continued reform of the aged care system as a second term priority for the Government. This is why the Government has asked the Productivity Commission to examine all aspects of Australia ' s aged care system, and to develop detailed options to ensure it can meet the challenges facing it in coming decades. The release of the Draft Productivity Commission Report Caring For Older Australians provided an opportunity for the community to provide the Commission with feedback on its analysis and Draft recommendations. Many organisations and individuals took advantage of this opportunity to make their views on the various proposals known. Many of the submissions are from individuals drawing the Commission ' s attention to their experiences of Australia ' s aged care system.

I trust that the above information is of assistance.

from the Minister for Health and Ageing, Ms Roxon

D ear Mr Murphy

I refer to your letter of 23 May 2011 conveying a petition submitted to the Standing Committee on Petitions regarding Falun Gong.

The Australian Government has long held concerns about the treatment of Falun Gong practitioners in China. While the Government takes no position on Falun Gong beliefs, it considers that China ' s ban on Falun Gong and the treatment of its practitioners are in breach of international human-rights standards. The Government has consistently raised these concerns with Chinese authorities, including at the last round of the Australia-China Human Rights Dialogue (HRD) in Beijing in December 2010.

Leading international human-rights organisations, including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, have been unable to substantiate allegations of Falun Gong-related organ harvesting. The Government is however concerned that organs have been harvested from executed prisoners, who may include Falun Gong practitioners. The Government strongly opposes this practice. We have raised this issue with China on several occasions, most recently at the last HRD. We are encouraged that China has taken steps to stamp out the practice with the establishment of a new organ-donation pilot program with Red Cross involvement. We will continue to raise our concerns about this practice with Chinese authorities.

Thank you once again for bringing this petition to my attention.

from the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Rudd

Dear Mr Murphy,

Thank you for your letter of 12 May 2011 relating to a petition recently submitted to the Standing Committee on Petitions regarding complementary protection for those people who fall outside of the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol (the Refugees Convention) criteria.

I am pleased to advise the Committee that the Migration Amendment (Complementary Protection) Bill 2011 (the Bill) was passed by the House of Representatives on Wednesday 25 May 2011. The Bill was introduced into the Senate on 14 June 2011.

The Australian Government is committed to promoting efficient, transparent and accountable immigration decision-making that provides appropriate outcomes for people seeking Australia's protection, in line with Australia's international human rights obligations.

The Bill will enable all claims raising Australia ' s Refugees Convention obligations and other non-refoulement (non-return) protection obligations to be considered under a single, integrated and timely Protection visa process with access to merits review, while maintaining the primacy of the Refugees Convention.

The complementary protection framework is designed to capture Australia's non-refoulement obligations contained in human rights conventions to which Australia is a party, namely:

The Bill reflects the Government ' s longstanding commitment to protecting those at risk of the most serious forms of human rights abuses. A person would be eligible for complementary protection if they face a real risk of:

People afforded protection under complementary protection may include women fleeing so-called " honour killings " or female genital mutilation. Each case would be assessed on an individual basis to determine if there are substantial grounds for believing that, as a necessary and foreseeable consequence of being returned, there is a real risk that the person will suffer significant harm.

The Government is committed to ensuring the passage of complementary protection legislation to reduce reliance on the Ministerial intervention process which is a lengthy and extremely stressful process for applicants.

Thank you once again for writing regarding the complementary protection petition.

from the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Mr Bowen

Dear Mr Murphy

Thank you for your letter of 23 May 2011 regarding the petition recently submitted to the Standing Committee on Petitions, which asserted that the petitioners ' ` … right to choose and have direct access to their own family GP being a medically qualified practitioner must not be changed, modified or removed and further, that the doctor/patient relationship remains sacrosanct and without constraints that may adversely affect health outcomes ' .

The Australian Government acknowledges the critical role played by GPs in delivering frontline care to all Australians and commends their dedication to the provision of accessible, high quality, and safe care. The Government supports the right of the Australian people to choose and to have access to their own GP, wherever possible.

GPs ' central role in the delivery of primary health care has not and will not change. As part of its Health Reform Agenda, the Government has renewed its focus on the delivery of stronger primary health care to get people the services they need in their local communities, keeping people well and out of hospitals.

The Government will strengthen its primary health care reforms by establishi

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