Philip Ruddock (Berowra, Liberal Party, Attorney-General) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

The primary purpose of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing (Transitional Provisions and Consequential Amendments) Bill 2006 is to amend various acts to allow operation of provisions in the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Bill 2006.

The Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Bill places obligations on reporting entities that are very similar to those placed on cash dealers and others under the Financial Transaction Reports Act. Eventually the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Bill will supersede many of the provisions of the Financial Transactions Reports Act.

The main amendments introduced by the consequential bill are to the Financial Transaction Reports Act. The act’s secrecy and access provisions will be repealed and will be replaced by new secrecy and access provisions in the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Bill.

The Financial Transaction Reports Act, as amended by the consequential bill, will continue in force after the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Bill has been enacted. The amended Financial Transaction Reports Act will continue to apply to cash dealers who are not reporting entities under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Bill. The consequential bill therefore makes amendments necessary to permit the parallel operation of both the Financial Transaction Reports Act and Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Bill and to avoid duplications. The consequential bill will limit the application of the Financial Transaction Reports Act to cash dealers who are not reporting entities under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Bill.

Most other changes to the Financial Transaction Reports Act are minor, for example reflecting the change in title of the Director of the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre, AUSTRAC, to the AUSTRAC Chief Executive Officer.

The consequential bill also amends other Acts to mirror the existing interaction of these acts with the Financial Transaction Reports Act.

For example, the Financial Transaction Reports Act currently excludes decisions from review under the Administrative Decisions (Judicial Review) Act. The consequential bill amends the Administrative Decisions (Judicial Review) Act to exclude decisions made under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Bill from judicial review pursuant to the Administrative Decisions (Judicial Review) Act.

Amendments to the Freedom of Information Act will exempt reports of suspicious matters under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Bill. This mirrors the existing exemption of suspicious transaction reports made under the Financial Transaction Reports Act.

Amendments to the Commonwealth Electoral Act permit a copy of a roll or an extract of a roll to be given to a reporting entity or agent of a reporting entity for the prescribed purpose of the reporting entity or its agent carrying out an applicable customer identification procedure under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Bill. The provision is equivalent to provisions in the Commonwealth Electoral Act that apply to the Financial Transaction Reports Act.

Amendments to the Crimes Act, dealing with pardons, quashed convictions and spent convictions, change the existing exemption for AUSTRAC, allowing disclosure of pardons, quashed and spent convictions for the purpose of AUSTRAC assessing prospective members of staff or consultants or other persons assisting AUSTRAC.

The consequential bill will also amend the Criminal Code Act by expanding the definition of ‘dealing in money or property’ to include proceeds of state and territory indictable offences. Money laundering offences in chapter 10 of the Criminal Code Act will therefore relate to a wider range of predicate offences. The application to state and territory indictable offences has been limited by another amendment in the consequential bill to ensure that their inclusion does not violate the Commonwealth’s constitutional power to make legislation under the external affairs power.

The consequential bill also amends the Privacy Act, bringing small business operators under the umbrella of the Privacy Act for the purposes of collection of personal information under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Bill.

The consequential bill also amends the Financial Management and Accountability Regulations. The step of using an act to amend regulations is being taken because otherwise these regulations would have to be amended in the one-day period between royal assent of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Bill and the commencement of the relevant part of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Bill which will commence the day after royal assent. I commend the consequential bill to the House.

Debate (on motion by Mr Crean) adjourned.