House debates

Wednesday, 17 August 2011

Bills

Social Security and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2011; Second Reading

Debate resumed on the motion:

That this bill be now read a second time.

12:25 pm

Photo of Kevin AndrewsKevin Andrews (Menzies, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Families, Housing and Human Services) Share this | | Hansard source

I indicate, without detaining the House too long, that this a bill which, in a sense, makes some technical amendments to the legislation in a range of matters. These are matters which are important in terms of the legislation itself and the operation of social security legislation in this country. (Quorum formed) I apologise to those members who had to rush back to the House—not on every occasion a quorum is called but on this occasion. I thank them and the government for their cooperation in this regard.

As I said, the Security and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2011 will introduce several measures affecting primarily the Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs portfolio. The bill seeks to amend the Social Security Act 1991 to enable parenting payment recipients to transfer temporarily to bereavement allowances following the death of a partner, remove the family member exemption from the two-year newly arrived residents' waiting period before special benefit is payable, enable the minister to make legislative instruments determining impairments tables and rules relating to the tables and clarify that payments made by an employer to an employee in lieu of a notice of termination are regarded as redundancy payments for the purposes of social security payments.

The Disability Services Act 1986 will also be amended to provide the disability advocacy services. Compliance with the disability advocacy standards will be assessed by an independent certification body over a three-year cycle. The bill also seeks to amend the Social Security Act 1991 and the Veterans Entitlements Act 1986 in relation to certain asset test exempt income streams and the provision of actuarial certificates.

Schedule 1 of the bill—bereavement allowance—would provide parenting payment recipients access to bereavement allowance on the death of a partner. The Social Security Act prevents a parenting payment recipient from qualifying for bereavement allowance on the death of his or her partner. The original intent of the legislation was that the surviving member of a couple who had dependent children would continue to receive parenting payment single rather than transferring temporarily to the equivalent of bereavement allowance and then back to parenting payment single. Historically, there was no financial advantage in transferring between these payment types.

The introduction of the secure and sustainable pension reform package in September 2009 resulted in an increase to the single rate of certain pension types, including bereavement allowance. Allowing parenting payment recipients to transfer temporarily to bereavement allowance will provide additional assistance. Schedule 2—special benefit—would align access to special benefit for certain visa holders with other migrants by removing the family member exemption from the two-year newly arrived resident's waiting period before special benefit is payable. Temporary visa holders may qualify for special benefit if the visa is included in a class of visas set out in a determination made by the minister. Currently, special benefit is payable to these temporary visa holders on arrival in Australia if suffering hardship, whereas other migrants would be subject to the newly arrived resident's waiting period and must wait two years before special benefit is payable, unless they can demonstrate both financial hardship and a substantial change in circumstances beyond their control after arrival in Australia. An exemption from the newly arrived resident's waiting period is provided to a family member under the Social Security Legislation Amendment (Newly Arrived Resident's Waiting Periods and Other Measures) Act 1997. The Social Security Act defines a family member as a partner or a dependent child. As a result, unlike other newly arrived migrants, these temporary visa holders can receive special benefit much earlier than migrants entering with permanent visas.

As a result of the changes made by this schedule, in respect of claims for special benefit lodged on or after 1 January 2012, the exemption from the newly arrived resident's waiting period will no longer apply to a holder of a visa that is in a class of visas determined under unless another exception applies. This change means that provisional partner visa holders will need to demonstrate that they have experienced a substantial change of circumstances beyond their control after arrival in Australia, in addition to financial hardship, in order to access special benefit.

Schedule 3—impairment tables for disability support pension—removes the current impairment tables from 1 January 2012 and enables the minister to introduce new impairment tables through a legislative instrument. This schedule also establishes that the minister may make a legislative instrument setting out the new impairment tables and guidelines containing the rules relating to the new impairment tables. The placement of the impairment tables in a legislative instrument will enable the impairment tables to be updated more frequently.

Schedule 4—disability advocacy services—provides for the introduction of a third-party certification quality assurance system for disability advocacy services. It is argued that the new quality assurance system will provide greater assurances about the quality of disability advocacy support by introducing mechanisms independent from government to assess the compliance of disability advocacy services against a tailored set of new disability advocacy standards. The current quality assurance system has not changed since 1997 and does not provide assurances about the quality of disability advocacy support being provided. Under the new quality assurance system, the compliance of disability advocacy services with the new disability advocacy standards—which will be set out in a legislative instrument—is assessed by an independent certification body over a three-year cycle. The quality assurance system is based on the Joint Accreditation System of Australian and New Zealand—JAS-ANZ—under which JAS-ANZ is the accreditation body that accredits certification bodies to undertake certification assessments of disability advocacy services. This third-party certification system has been successfully in place for disability employment services since 2002.

Schedule 5—asset test exempt income streams—would make a number of amendments relating to the treatment of certain asset test exempt income streams. Under the social security law, lifetime and life expectancy income streams receive concessional treatment for the assets test, provided they meet the requirements under sections 9A and 9B of the Social Security Act. This means that the asset value of the income stream is not taken into account when determining whether a social security payment is payable to a person. Similarly, the Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986, in sections 5JA and 5JB, also extends a concessional treatment under its assets test when the equivalent requirements are met. Due to changes in economic and market conditions, the probability that a provider of an income stream will be able to pay the income stream as required under the contract or governing rules could fluctuate quite markedly, even over a short period of time. As a result, some social security customers provide the secretary—and, in similar circumstances, veterans affairs pensioners provide the Repatriation Commission—with actuarial certificates that fail to meet the high probability test, which results in their income stream becoming subject to the assets test, within the 26-week grace period, until they obtain a favourable certificate that meets the high probability test.

This schedule also clarifies that the grace period in which a person must provide a new actuarial certificate for an income stream applies from the beginning of the particular financial year—that is, from 1 July—and ends when a new actuarial certificate is given to the secretary or, as the case may be, the Repatriation Commission, in relation to that income stream for that financial year or at the end of the period of 26 weeks beginning on 1 July of that financial year. If a person does not give the secretary or the Repatriation Commission a new actuarial certificate in relation to the income stream by the end of the 26-week period, the income stream will lose its asset test exemption.

Schedule 6—termination payments—seeks to clarify that payments made by an employer to an employee in lieu of notice of termination are regarded as redundancy payments for the purposes of the social security law. The Social Security Act provides for an income maintenance period to be applied to people who have claimed, or are in receipt of, certain social security payments and have received a redundancy or leave payment. The income maintenance period is the period in which redundancy payments, or leave payments, are treated as income under the act. Income maintenance periods are applied because people who receive leave or redundancy payments from their employer are expected to use these payments to support themselves for a period before turning to the social security system for assistance. The amendments made by this schedule clarify that a payment made to a person in lieu of notice of the termination of their employment is a redundancy payment for the purposes of the Social Security Act. The effect of this is that a payment in lieu of notice will be included when calculating whether the person has to serve an income maintenance period and the length of that period. The changes made by this schedule ensure that people who receive payments in lieu of notice are treated in the same way as people who receive other types of redundancy or termination payments. The amendments made by this schedule apply to payments in lieu of notice made on or after the commencement of this schedule. The schedule commences on the day after royal assent.

As I indicated at the outset, these are sensible amendments that would be made, I suspect, regardless of who is in government, and for that reason the coalition does not oppose them.

12:37 pm

Photo of Shayne NeumannShayne Neumann (Blair, Australian Labor Party) Share this | | Hansard source

I speak in support of the Social Security and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2011. I will concentrate particularly on schedules (3) and (4). As the previous speaker said, there are a number of sensible amendments that update disability provisions to make sure that we enhance the integrity of the social security and veterans affairs legislation in this country. There are a number of important changes and the first schedule deals with one of these. It makes sure that parenting payment recipients can access bereavement allowance following the death of a partner, giving them a helping hand in circumstances where they are going through the grief and difficulties that arise with the loss of a loved one.

Historically, that first schedule has provided no financial advantage in transferring between types of payment. The bill gives parenting payment recipients access to a bereavement allowance, from 1 January 2012, following the death of their partner. It is a degree of compassion that means for a period of 14 weeks they can receive additional financial support, which they would need. It is difficult for people who go through these circumstances. There are added expenses, including funeral expenses, associated with the death of a partner and so this is a sensible, compassionate and charitable way to improve the lot of people in communities across the country.

The second schedule deals with the special benefit. This deals with circumstances which make it a sensible arrangement for provisional partner visa holders to have the same requirements as other new migrants who have a more restricted access to a special benefit. This is a matter of aligning the circumstances of different people. Other new migrants not only have a waiting period but also have to demonstrate financial hardship and a change of circumstances outside their control. We are changing the circumstances for provisional partner visa holders to make sure that those two factors are now taken into consideration. It makes sure that the system is consistent across the country. (Quorum formed) The coalition—who said these reforms are necessary and would have been passed if they were on the Treasury benches—are not interested in reform of disability legislation and are not interested in reform to improve the integrity of the system. The member for Cowper should hang his head in shame for calling a quorum in these circumstances. This is important reform. The previous speaker could not get here in time with his notes and it just goes to show the utter contempt and disregard the coalition have for sensible legislative reform.

I will talk briefly on the third aspect, the very sensible asset test exemption income stream. It clarifies the period in which a person must provide a new actuarial certificate on lifetime and life expectancy income streams and is a sensible reform as well. There is a termination change in schedule 6 of the social security legislation. We know that this is important because people are made redundant and redundancy payments are taken into consideration with social security payments. That is why this schedule is important.

The final two schedules I will briefly focus on deal with issues of impairment tables for disability support pensions and with the disability advocacy services. This bill removes outdated impairment tables for the disability support pension and enables the minister to introduce a new impairment table through a disallowable legislative instrument. This gives effect to the 2009-10 budget Better and Fairer Assessments measure. The reform of disability care and support has been a priority of this government, and I welcome the Productivity Commission report that we saw recently. The national disability insurance scheme, which this government has shown significant commitment to by putting $10 million on the table to support technical policy work in this regard, and the new COAG select council of ministers, which will be established and lead to greater reform in this area, are indications, along with the advisory group to the select council, that this government is committed to repairing the dysfunctional system of disability support in this country.

There are changes to the impairment tables, and they were announced in the 2009-10 year. The tables were last reviewed in 1993 and they contain a number of anomalies and inconsistencies—for example, assistance can be provided for hearing aids but that is not included in the assessment for hearing impairment. Visual assessment is assessed with glasses as well. There are a number of disability advocacy groups. The advisory committee recommended a thorough review, and it was found that the impairment tables were right out of date. The report recommended that new impairment tables be used for eligibility for disability support pensions from 1 January 2012. These tables are brought in line with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the World Health Organisation's International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health.

The final aspect I want to touch on relates to issues concerning disability advocacy service. The bill introduced a third-party certification quality assurance system for disability advocacy services. We have had a long commitment to making sure we look after the most vulnerable sections of our society, and we have made a commitment in this regard. Stronger quality assurance for disability advocacy services is important. Development of a robust quality assurance system is really important for people in the disability support sector. The third-party certification quality assurance system in this bill has been successfully in place since about 2002, and we think this will be improved with this legislative reform.

I am very strongly committed to making sure people in my area of Ipswich and West Moreton who have been disabled—and we have had a long history with large numbers of people suffering from disability in our area—are cared for properly. This goes back to the days of the Challinor Centre, which is an institution that in its first guise was an asylum for people who were previously described as 'lunatics'. That place is currently the location of the University of Queensland Ipswich campus. From that time and the de-institutionalisation that took place in the eighties and nineties, the low cost of housing meant that Ipswich and the rural areas outside were areas for a large number of people with disabilities and their carers to live. In fact, Carers Queensland told me not long ago that I had in Blair the largest number of carers in Queensland for any federal electorate.

So this is an important reform of the national disability insurance scheme. Anything that deals with disability service is extremely important for my electorate. I am putting on a national disability insurance forum in my electorate for people to come to. For any constituents who are listening, they can contact my office and we will give them the details of that. Later this year I will be running what we call the Blair Disability Links at the Brassall Shopping Centre. It is an expo where all the disability support groups across the electorate of Blair can come. They provide services and information. I congratulate the Brassall Shopping Centre, who have been the supporters of this, and I urge everyone in my electorate to contact me about the important activities of the Blair Disability Links and the national disability insurance scheme forum that we will be having in the next few months.

I support this legislation. I think it is good for our system and it is good that we care for those with disabilities.

12:49 pm

Photo of Luke SimpkinsLuke Simpkins (Cowan, Liberal Party) Share this | | Hansard source

I certainly welcome the opportunity today to speak on the Social Security and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2011. As my constituents would be aware, I am an absolute supporter of the responsibility of government to provide that hand up to people who need such support. It is through the prism of the hand up and not the handout that we must always see welfare payments in this country. Those entitled to such support must be provided with it, and those who are not entitled to it must not receive it. My last newsletter reflected the common view of my constituents that they support such assistance; but, where anyone who seeks to obtain such assistance does so without entitlement and illegally, I certainly encourage my constituents to report such persons. It has been my experience that Australians dislike someone taking something that they are not entitled to, and that is the case with some welfare payment issues. However, I think Australians should be more willing to become involved and report such issues.

But we are not here today for that. Instead we are here today to debate how to make the system more efficient and better for Australians. I know that across the 25 suburbs of Cowan there are people in need of welfare support. There are people who have to work within the confines of their disability. There are people who are in need of the various forms of payments, pensions and allowances that are available for Australians and residents of Australia. Through Girrawheen, Alexander Heights, Marangaroo, Ballajura—basically all the suburbs—there are people who are in need of support, and I welcome that support.

There has been a lot said lately on the concept of the national disability insurance scheme. Certainly in the last couple of months I have had more and more contact with people who are involved in the disability area. I would like to thank Ann Wood, one of my constituents, who brought her son to me and made it very clear the life that she has to live with her son and the difficulties that they have had. She also made it clear that there are a lot of breakdowns and systemic problems that need to be addressed. I think we are united as a parliament in the view that a system that is broken needs to be dealt with and dealt with quickly. So I welcome the Productivity Commission report. I know from my discussions with the coalition leadership on this matter that we look forward to be giving the Productivity Commission report generous consideration in the future. We will work through these problems to try to get a better, sustainable, long-term deal for those who are labouring under the issues of disability—both families and the person who has the disability. We certainly welcome that step forward, but as we know it has been estimated that some $6 billion is going to be required to sort out a National Disability Insurance Scheme. That will be challenging, but there must be a way that we can work through it with the states to make sure that we end up with the right result.

I will now move through the bill and talk about some of the issues that are involved. This bill deals with a range of income support measures, including those for veterans and for the disabled. It puts forward a range of changes that will better ensure that Australia's income support system provides more appropriate assistance to some of the most vulnerable members of our community. These are measures which the coalition supports.

The first of these changes is to allow recipients of parenting payments access to bereavement allowance. It goes without saying that the loss of a spouse or a partner has a devastating impact upon individuals and families, and quite apart from the emotional effects that result from bereavement there is invariably a financial aspect to consider as well. I understand from changes that were made in 2009 that the Social Security Act as it currently stands prevents a person receiving a parenting payment from qualifying for bereavement allowance upon the death of their partner. A typical situation is that someone on a parenting payment who is met with the death of their partner is not able to move onto the bereavement allowance. Under the changes in this bill, and rightly so, they will be allowed to do so, and then after that period they may move back to the parenting payment (single). Before 2009, that did not place vulnerable people at a disadvantage, and this bill will remedy the situation of the 2009 changes.

This bill also makes changes to correct an anomaly in the operation of special benefit for certain visa holders by removing the family member exemption from the newly arrived resident's two-year waiting period for special benefit. As things presently stand, temporary visa holders may gain access to special benefit if their visa falls within a class of visa set out in a determination made by the minister. As a result, special benefit is payable to temporary visa holders upon arrival in Australia if they are suffering hardship, whilst other migrants on other visa types are subject to the usual arrangements. Other migrants must wait for two years before a special benefit is payable, unless they are able to prove that both financial hardship and changes to their circumstances beyond their control have occurred following their arrival in Australia. In other words, temporary visa holders whose visas fall into a certain category can receive a special benefit much earlier than those migrants coming to Australia with permanent visas. The changes contained in this bill will result in a fairer application of requirements for special benefit and will ensure that assistance is genuinely being provided to those in the greatest need.

The bill also seeks to update what are known as the 'impairment tables' to ensure that Australia's legislation reflects contemporary approaches to medical treatment and rehabilitation. In order to access the disability support pension, an individual must have an impairment that rates at 20 points or more under the impairment tables. As the previous speaker said, the tables currently being used were last subject to a comprehensive review 18 years ago in 1993. Given the advances in technology, changed approaches to medical treatment and greater flexibility in rehabilitation practices that have occurred in the intervening years, a comprehensive review of those tables is appropriate and required.

I understand that the government has consulted with medical experts, allied health professionals, medical health workers and those in the rehabilitation field as well as a range of peak bodies and professional associations in reviewing these impairment tables. I understand the updated tables will be introduced at a later time by way of legislative instrument and that the Minister for Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs is committed to further extensive consultations to ensure that Australia has a system where assistance is better targeted and appropriate to contemporary medical treatment and rehabilitation frameworks. Placing these updated impairment tables in a legislative instrument will mean that they can be more responsive to changing medical and rehabilitation practices.

This bill contains initiatives that are designed to improve the integrity of particular asset test exempt income streams. Over time, inequities have arisen between social security recipients and veterans' affairs pensioners; inconsistencies in the treatment of these payments have meant that some recipients have received concessions at higher payment rates without meeting their reciprocal responsibilities. The changes put forward here are intended to provide some clarity and to strengthen existing income stream rules. Social security recipients and veterans' affairs pensioners who have lifetime or life expectancy income streams are currently required to provide an actuarial certificate stating that there is a high probability that the provider of the income stream will be able to pay the income stream as required under the contract or governing rules for the term of the income stream.

Due to changes in economic and market conditions, the probability that a provider of an income stream will be able to pay the income stream as required under the contract or governing rules could fluctuate markedly, even over a short period of time. As a result, some social security and veterans' affairs customers are providing certificates that fail to meet the high probability test. This leads to their payments being subject to the assets test, which can create a level of uncertainty and financial problems for some of the most vulnerable in the community. It is good that the changes in this bill are designed to help provide some clarity so that these customers may provide only one certificate for each financial year to show that the fund has sufficient resources to pay the income stream for its term. In the event that someone provides more than one certificate for a particular financial year only the first certificate given will have effect.

The bill also provides some clarity in relation to the status of termination payments within social security law. For a variety of reasons some employers will elect to make a payment to an employee in lieu of notice of termination. The provisions of this bill will help ensure that people who receive such payments are treated in the same way as people who receive other types of redundancy or termination payments. Importantly, the bill will provide an enhanced quality assurance system for disability advocacy services to ensure that those Australians who live with disability are afforded the best possible advocacy support.

As we know, the current quality assurance system has been in place since 1997 but no longer provides sufficient assurances about the quality of disability advocacy support being provided. Under the system proposed by this bill the compliance of disability advocacy services with the new disability advocacy standards, to be set out in a legislative instrument, is assessed by an independent certification body over a three-year cycle. The quality assurance system is based on the Joint Accreditation System of Australia and New Zealand, which is the accreditation body that accredits certification bodies to undertake certification assessments of disability advocacy services. I understand that the system has been the subject of a successful trial, and was developed following extensive consultation with those working in the sector.

This bill makes a number of changes which clarify aspects of social security law, and should make it easier for those who depend on income support to understand the system. Moreover, it addresses a number of inconsistencies in the application of the law that have arisen over time and the changes proposed here should result in an income support system which is fairer across the board.

It is right that the parliament do all it can to support those Australians who, because of a disability, are unable to work to support themselves and their families. It is equally important that the services of those who have risked their lives for our national security is recognised through a stable system of veterans affairs' income support. The coalition is supporting these initiatives in the hope that they will improve the system for those who depend upon it. As I said at the start, it is right that we have a strong and viable social security system put in place to protect and to provide for those who are labouring under circumstances beyond their control—particularly the victims of circumstances who do not have the same capacity as the rest of society to benefit from the opportunities that this strong society that we have provides.

It is without doubt that we support these measures. We look forward to the passing of these when this motion is concluded.

1:02 pm

Photo of Jenny MacklinJenny Macklin (Jagajaga, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs) Share this | | Hansard source

First of all I would like to thank all of the speakers for their contribution to the debate on this bill, because the government is working very hard to support people with disability to fulfil their potential.

Just last week the Prime Minister released the Productivity Commission's final report into long-term care and support of people with disability. As members would know, consistent with the Productivity Commission's recommendations we have already started work to transform the way care and support is provided to people with disabilities. We are working to deliver results for people with disability right now, including by improving support for Australians with a disability to help them into work wherever that is possible.

The disability support pension is an essential element of Australia's safety net, and it is vital that it supports the people who need it: those Australians who, through disability, are unable to work to fully support themselves. In the 2009-10 budget the government committed to update the impairment tables used to assess eligibility for the disability support pension to bring them into line with modern medical and rehabilitation practice. The current impairment tables have not been comprehensively rewritten since they were introduced in 1991. It is essential that the level of someone's impairment is assessed using the most up-to-date medical information and with reference to modern rehabilitation practices. This is an important element of the government's reforms to the disability support pension, to make it simpler, fairer and sustainable for those who need it.

An advisory committee of medical, allied health and rehabilitation experts, representatives of disability peak bodies, mental health advocates and relevant government agencies was established in 2010 to provide advice on updating the impairment tables. Following a thorough review the advisory committee has provided its final report to the government, which I released publicly last month. The report finds that the current impairment tables are out of date. The advisory committee has developed new impairment tables in close consultation with the medical profession and disability stakeholders. These proposed new tables have also been made public. The advisory committee's report recommends the new tables be used to assess eligibility for the disability support pension from 1 January 2012. In line with the advisory committee's recommendations the government is consulting with disability stakeholders, mental health advocates and experts to ensure the recommended new tables are implemented fairly and effectively.

This bill removes the current outdated tables and enables new tables to be introduced through a disallowable legislative instrument. This change will occur on 1 January 2012. Putting the impairment tables into a disallowable instrument allows them to be updated regularly in response to developments in medical and rehabilitation practice, and will also retain the parliament's role in scrutinising any changes.

The bill also introduces a stronger quality assurance system for disability advocacy services to make sure that people with disability receive the best possible advocacy support. The current quality assurance system has not changed since 1997, and the need for improved quality assurance for disability advocacy services has been highlighted in a number of reviews. This bill requires disability advocacy services that receive financial assistance under the Disability Services Act to be reviewed and assessed by independent, accredited certification bodies against disability advocacy standards. This quality assurance system has been in place for disability employment services since 2002. It involves people with disability at all levels in the system, including as members of audit teams. The new system has been successfully trialled and independently evaluated in consultation with the disability advocacy sector. The evaluation recommended formal implementation. These changes will help meet the objectives of the National Disability Strategy and will also help meet Australia's obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

This bill also gives effect to a 2011-12 budget measure by enabling parenting payment recipients to access bereavement allowance on the death of a partner. Allowing a parenting payment recipient to transfer to bereavement allowance on the death of their partner will provide additional financial assistance during a very difficult time.

The bill also gives effect to another 2011-12 budget measure, to more closely align the rules for accessing special benefit for provisional partner visa holders with the rules for other newly arrived migrants. Under current policy, provisional partner visa holders are able to access special benefit from when they are granted the visa and are in Australia if they can demonstrate that they are suffering from financial hardship. This is not consistent with other newly arrived migrants subject to the newly arrived residents waiting period, who need to demonstrate both financial hardship and change in circumstances outside their control in order to access special benefit. From 1 January 2012, the rules for provisional partner visa holders will be consistent with those for other newly arrived migrants. The new arrangements will continue to ensure adequate protection for vulnerable migrants—for example, where there is domestic violence, death of a partner or an injury or accident after their arrival in Australia.

The bill also makes changes to the social security law and veterans entitlements legislation to enhance the integrity of treatment of certain asset-test-exempt income streams. These changes strengthen the existing rules that require lifetime and life expectancy income streams to provide an annual actuarial certificate in order to benefit from concessional treatment and address inconsistencies in the treatment of these income streams that have arisen over time.

Finally, the bill also makes amendments to the social security law to clarify that payments made by an employer to an employee in lieu of notice of the termination of his or her employment are redundancy payments for the purposes of social security law. This ensures that, in calculating income maintenance periods under the act, people who receive these payments are treated in the same way as people who receive other types of redundancy payments. I thank the House.

Question agreed to.

Bill read a second time.

Message from the Governor-General recommending appropriation announced.