Steve Irons (Swan, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

It is an exciting time for sport in Australia. As we cast our eyes to the immediate future we can see that Australia is about to host three major international sporting events. Next year Australia will host the Asian Football Confederation Asian Cup from 9 to 31 January and co-host the ICC Cricket World Cup between 14 February and 29 March. Then we look forward to the Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast four years from now between 4 April and 15 April in 2018. Hosting sporting events is something Australia is good at and something that the Australian public enjoys. I think it is fair to say that we have a successful record in holding two Olympic Games, rugby and cricket world cups and many Commonwealth and Empire Games over the years, including in Perth in 1962.

It has been the case that hosting international sporting events has required a great deal of preparation and organisation by governments, but this has perhaps never been more true than today. There are many considerations involving many government departments covering issues such as security, immigration, infrastructure and transport that must be taken into account when bidding to host major events, and detailed commitments are made at the bidding stage in written undertakings. One such undertaking made in the case of the three events Australia is about to host concerns the protection of the unauthorised commercial use of certain indicia and images associated with each event, commensurate with the support provided to the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games.

Today the government brings before parliament the Major Sporting Events (Indicia and Images) Protection Bill 2014 to fulfil this commitment and to fulfil an important point of the planning process for the Asia Cup, Cricket World Cup and Commonwealth Games that Australia is about to host. Given the cost of hosting major events, the investment of sponsors is incredibly important to ensuring that the cost does not fall excessively on the taxpayers of this country. Sponsors will spend big money to associate themselves with a major sporting event, and this helps to pay for new stadiums, transport links and other infrastructure that remain for the benefit of the community some time after the event is over. Sponsors certainly need to know that the terms of their agreement will be protected by the hosting country and that the exclusivity of the deal signed will be protected. As the minister said, if sponsors do not have certainty that they are the only business that can directly benefit from official association with the events, they may withdraw or reduce their sponsorship, with negative impact on the taxpayer and potential legal implications following the event.

So it is incumbent on the host country—in this case, Australia—to ensure that there are adequate laws in place to provide for the protection of these significant agreements. We are looking to protect them from ambush marketing within stadia, unauthorised use of the logos of the event and unauthorised use of images or persons associated with the event. As we have seen in the past, companies will stop at little to promote their own companies in the form of ambush marketing. During the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, authorities detained 36 female fans for their part in a stunt on behalf of the Dutch beer brewers Bavaria during a game between the Netherlands and Denmark. The 36 fans were wearing bright orange dresses featuring the Bavaria logo. The fans were removed during the match and an investigation was subsequently carried out by FIFA.

It is true that Australia already has an intellectual property regime in place, including for the protection of logos, indicia and images as well as quick access to registration and legal remedies. It is also true that there are varying degrees of legislation at the state and territory level to support commercial rights protection for major sporting events. However, the issue confronting the parliament is that the existing frameworks do not provide the level of protection that addresses the unique need of sporting events. As the minister outlined, an analysis has identified that not all event indicia can be protected under the Trade Marks Act 1995 and the Copyright Act 1968; and limited legislation exists at the state or territory government level relating to protection against ambush marketing, with no consistent approach. So the government has been consulting with various government departments to produce the best piece of legislation possible to address this issue. This has been a cross-agency matter involving the Attorney-General's Department, the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service, the Department of Communications, the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, the Australian Federal Police, the Australian Government Solicitor, IP Australia, and the Treasury. Obviously, with all of those departments involved, sport is very high on the importance list for the government, and this particular bill has some weight to make sure that these sporting events survive.

The bill is based on similar special legislation for the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games and the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games and will provide the pragmatic set of protections required in a way that complements the various major event provisions existing in the states and territories. There are some sensible exemptions to protect the media's right to factual reporting, which are of course necessary. To ensure transparency of the process, the legislation provides for a register that will be established and maintained by event organisers for the primary purpose of ensuring that the public is aware of the identity of those who are authorised to use each event's indicia and images. Importantly, the legislation will commence as soon as possible after 1 July but will cease to have effect a few months following the conclusion of the events. In the case of the 2015 Asia Cup, this is 30 June 2015; for the ICC Cricket World Cup, 31 March 2016; and for the 2018 Commonwealth Games, 31 December 2018.

So by enacting these laws the government will be ensuring that Australia's reputation as a go-to host of events is maintained, and it will safeguard the potential for Australia to apply for future events. My only regret is that Perth is not playing a role in the hosting of these two events, particularly the Asia Cup. There has been a view expressed in Perth in relation to the Asia Cup that, aside from the geographical remoteness of Perth, a reason could be Perth's lack of suitable stadia. This is about to change, with a new stadium being constructed at Burswood in my electorate of Swan. I can update the House that the geotechnical works to stabilise the site were completed earlier this year, ahead of schedule, which is a credit to the management of the Liberal National government and Parliamentary Secretary John McGrath, who is overseeing this process. These works are required as the site of the stadium precinct is a former rubbish tip on the Burswood peninsular. I see the Member for Pearce here, and I am sure he was involved in this process as Treasurer for the state of Western Australia at the time, knowing there was a lot of work to be done at that particular site. The site is currently being allowed to settle under 740,000 tonnes of soil surcharge. On 15 April, Premier Barnett announced that a consortium led by Brookfield Multiplex and John Laing had been awarded the contract to design, build, finance and manage the new stadium. So, by the beginning of the 2018 AFL season, Perth will at last have a world-class stadium that will make it a more attractive place to host international events in my electorate of Swan. I see the Minister for Sport is in the chamber at the moment, and I will be pleased to be able to send him an invite to the opening of that stadium when it occurs.

My electorate of Swan will be a major beneficiary of the billion dollar package of infrastructure associated with the development, including better transport links and landscaping. It will not be forgotten how the Labor Party and the local Labor MLA member in particular opposed this stadium development. Actually, it was one of the most amazing oppositions to a piece of sporting infrastructure that I had ever seen in any campaign. It was just being an opposition, and that is all they were doing. Everyone had agreed on the stadium—it was a fantastic location, a fantastic site. The local MLA from Victoria Park actually spent time getting photos with the Premier, with the developers and with the parliamentary secretary who was charged with looking after the stadium. Then his leader of the opposition, when running up to the election, said, 'No, we won't support this stadium; we will keep it at Subiaco'. We never saw the member for Victoria Park again after that statement, up until the date of the election; he was so embarrassed.

An honourable member: He will be at the opening.

I am sure he will be at the opening, yes. The Liberal National government made a positive decision on the stadium, and this was resoundingly endorsed at the last state election. I see the member for Brand here, who I am sure also supports the stadium at Burswood and supports the move of the Eagles to Lathlain.

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