Senate debates

Tuesday, 27 November 2012

Bills

Privacy Amendment (Enhancing Privacy Protection) Bill 2012; In Committee

4:46 pm

Photo of Joe LudwigJoe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Hansard source

The government does not support the motion. The government has, in the alternate—and as I think we will be doing—accepted the committee's recommendation to require at least 14 days to elapse after a notice has been provided to an individual before default information about the individual can be included in the credit reporting system. The government has agreed with the committee's view that a 14-day period provided sufficient time for an individual to receive the final notice warning them that a default would be listed for the overdue payment and to contact the credit provider to make appropriate arrangements for the payment of the overdue amount. The government has looked at the issue of extending it to 30 days and does not believe it is appropriate. I note, if you put it in this context, that an individual must be 60 days overdue in making a payment before a credit provider can send the individual a notice warning them that their default will be listed. A 30-day period before listing would mean that the individual was overdue by at least 90 days and has not contacted the credit provider in that time to make alternative arrangements. The government considers that that is an excessive period of time. It is more important that the credit provider can contact and talk to the creditor in those instances. It is, of course, only a minimum period. The government notes that the credit reporting code of conduct may provide additional obligations in relation to listing defaults, including addressing situations where a longer time period may be appropriate. The credit reporting code will be developed by all stakeholders and, once registered by the Information Commissioner, compliance with the code will be mandatory for all credit providers. Having given that short synopsis, those are the reasons why the government will not be supporting the Greens amendments.

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