Steven Ciobo (Moncrieff, Liberal Party, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

I thank those members who have contributed to this debate. This bill makes a number of amendments designed to reduce the regulatory burden on businesses operating in Australia. Schedule 1 of this bill amends the Corporations Act 2001 to reduce the cost to businesses operating in Australia by removing the ability for 100 members of a company to request a general meeting. While this change ensures company resources are no longer spent on meetings requested by only a very small minority of shareholders, we have also made sure important shareholder rights are retained. This change will not impact on the right of a member or members with at least five per cent of the voting shares to request a general meeting. Nor will it impact on the right of 100 members of a company to place items on the agenda of a general meeting.

This bill simplifies remuneration disclosures in Australia. Unlisted disclosing entities will no longer be required to prepare a remuneration report. This bill clarifies when entities can change their financial year end dates. Stakeholders have been calling for this clarity since an amendment to permit companies greater flexibility to change their financial year end date was inserted into the Corporations Act in 2010. Entities will finally be able to access this flexibility with confidence.

Finally, schedule 1 of the bill removes the requirement for companies limited by guarantee, that are not required to undertake an audit, to appoint an auditor. This primarily benefits smaller companies limited by guarantee who feel the burden of the existing requirement most acutely.

Scheduled 2 of this bill amends the Australian Securities and Investments Commission Act 2001 to improve the efficiency of government processes, reflecting the government's commitment to identifying cost savings and efficiencies within its own processes. Schedule 2 also improves the efficiency of the operation of the Takeovers Panel. It further extends the remuneration-setting responsibility of the Remuneration Tribunal to the Financial Reporting Council, the Australian Accounting Standards Board and the Auditing and Assurance Standards Board.

In summary, the amendments made by this bill will reduce the costs borne by Australian businesses because of government regulation. It will permit business to focus on what it is they should be doing—running their business. I commend the bill to the House.

Question agreed to.

Bill read a second time.

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