Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

The 2020 independent review of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999, led by Professor Graeme Samuel AC, found that Australia's environment data and information is fragmented and disparate, and that there are fundamental information gaps.

Unlocking impediments to data sharing and supply is a key component of Australia's environmental law reforms to enable better, faster decisions by government and business while protecting areas of high environmental value.

The Environment Information Australia Bill 2025 (the EIA Bill) would establish the statutory position of the Head of Environment Information Australia (HEIA), to provide national leadership for improving the availability and accessibility of high-quality, national environmental data and information, and ensuring that there is independent reporting and accountability for the state of the environment and our effectiveness in protecting and restoring it. Access to authoritative sources of high-quality environmental information is crucial for evidence-informed and targeted policy, project, investment and regulatory decision-making.

Providing better, more readily available and useable data and reporting on the environment, its condition and the location of our nationally significant plants and animals would underpin more streamlined and informed environmental decisions that reduce negative impacts, and increase positive impacts, on nature. This will restore transparency and confidence in environmental information and decision-making.

I commend the bill to the House.

Debate adjourned.