Michael Sukkar (Deakin, Liberal Party, Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

I thank all members who have contributed to this debate. The Competition and Consumer Amendment (Australian Consumer Law—Country of Origin Representations) Bill 2020 will make an important range of amendments to the Competition and Consumer Act 2010. The amendment lays the foundation for Australian made complementary medicines to have robust access to a safe harbour Australian origin claim and access to the 'Australian Made, Australian Grown' logo—the iconic kangaroo in a triangle symbol. The Australian Made claim will help to create the right conditions for Australian manufacturing to continue to grow. This in turn will support the complementary medicine sector's exports, which were valued at over $1 billion last year. This industry is a significant Australian manufacturing success story and supports the employment of around 29,000 people.

We know that businesses are always concerned that, when regulation is introduced, the compliance can be onerous. Regulations made under the changes we are introducing, though, will only apply to those businesses that choose to rely on the test in the new regulation to make an Australian origin claim. If an Australian business does not want to make an Australian origin claim under these reforms—that is, these changes to the act and the creation of a new regulation and information standard—it will not face any additional regulatory burden. Such a business, therefore, will not be required to comply with any currently proposed new labelling requirements.

The bill therefore strikes the right balance between encouraging domestic sales and exports while maintaining consumer confidence in the transparency of Australian origin claims and in the value of the widely recognised 'Australian Made, Australian Grown' logo. I thank members for their contribution to the debate on this very important bill.

Question agreed to.

Bill read a second time.

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