House debates
Tuesday, 27 March 2007
Private Health Insurance (Reinsurance Trust Fund Levy) Amendment Bill 2006
Consideration of Senate Message
Consideration resumed from 26 March.
Senate’s requested amendments—
(1) Schedule 1, item 17, page 5 (table item 1), omit “by the Council by legislative instrument”, substitute “in writing by the Council”.
(2) Schedule 1, item 17, page 5 (table item 2), omit “by the Minister by legislative instrument”, substitute “in writing by the Minister”.
(3) Schedule 1, page 5 (after line 26), after item 18, insert:
18A At the end of section 7
Add:
(4) An instrument made under paragraph (a) of item 1 or 2 of the table in subsection (1) is not a legislative instrument.
5:07 pm
Peter Lindsay (Herbert, Liberal Party, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Defence) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
I move:
That the amendments be agreed to.
There are three amendments to this bill that have been requested by the Senate. These three requested amendments remove the requirements for determinations of rates of risk equalisation levy to be set by legislative instruments and simply require the rates to be determined in writing by the minister or his delegate. This is because the disallowable rules made under section 318-30 will set out the method for calculating the levy. Setting the rate of levy thus is an administrative decision to give effect to an outcome worked out under the disallowable rules and should not be subject to disallowance. However, it is fair and reasonable to have the enabling framework included in the rules to ensure that it is subject to parliamentary scrutiny. The funds pay their levy into a risk equalisation pool which, under the community rating, then helps cushion insurers against the claims costs of high-risk members and high-cost claims. The government accepts these requests and commends the amendments to the House.
5:08 pm
Nicola Roxon (Gellibrand, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Health) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Labor is happy to support these amendments. As the minister has indicated, they are of a minor and technical nature but do improve the framework of the bill.
Question agreed to.