Michael Ronaldson (Victoria, Liberal Party, Minister for Veterans’ Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

I think the important issue here is that this legislation is not about providing ACMA with an excuse to do nothing. This is providing a level of discretion for ACMA in relation to minor or trivial matters. I imagine the Commonwealth Ombudsman would be involved on only the rarest of occasions because ACMA still has responsibilities under the act. ACMA's responsibilities are quite clear. The principle that underpins both those two acts are quite clear. This is seeking to take out of the present act the obligation to investigate in every single situation and there are, Senator Xenophon, a number of examples of where the non-discretionary requirement has required ACMA to investigate matters which, quite frankly, were just a waste or resources. One was a complaint under the broadcasting act in 2004, which took five years to make, about whether a snake on a Channel 7 report was a big snake or a little snake. This is about strengthening ACMA. This is about providing the opportunity for ACMA to put its resources into issues which it views as non-trivial. They are the sorts of powers and the opportunity that ACMA needs to get to the shysters you are talking about because at the moment there is no discretion. When there is no discretion, they are required to investigate every single matter, which I can only assume takes up enormous resources.

We are as anxious as you are, Senator Xenophon, to make sure that ACMA has the very best opportunity and the very best resources to investigate the shysters and those who are creating the misery and not to have a legislative requirement to investigate every single trivial complaint, which can only, as a matter of course, as I am sure you understand, impact on ACMA's ability to do the real work.