Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Hansard source

by leave—I move the amendments on sheet TK327:

(1) Clause 2, page 2 (table item 5), omit "7", substitute "8".

(2) Page 60 (after line 15), at the end of the Bill, add:

Schedule 8 — Concealment of goods

Biosecurity Act 2015

1 Section 9

Insert:

conceal goods has a meaning affected by subsection 186A(2).

2 After section 186

Insert:

186A Contravening conditions applying to conditionally non-prohibited goods brought or imported into Australian territory — concealment of goods

(1) A person is liable to a civil penalty if:

(a) the person brings or imports goods into Australian territory; and

(b) the goods are conditionally non-prohibited goods; and

(c) a condition in relation to the goods specified in a determination in force under subsection 174(1) has not been complied with; and

(d) the goods are concealed for the purpose of preventing the goods from being found, or preventing the true nature of the goods from being determined, by a biosecurity official.

Civil penalty: 1,200 penalty units.

(2) Conceal goods includes any of the following:

(a) concealing or disguising the goods on a person, within any clothing worn by the person, within any other object located on the person or within any other object not located on the person (including by sewing, gluing, fastening, binding, wrapping, covering, enveloping or packaging the goods);

(b) incorrectlymarking or labelling the goods or any packaging or container in which the goods are located;

(c) altering the goods (including by changing or suppressing the appearance, texture, smell or sound of the goods).

Exception

(3) Subsection (1) does not apply if the person:

(a) did not do the act, or omit to do the act, that constituted the failure to comply with the condition referred to in paragraph (1)(c); and

(b) did not aid, abet, counsel or procure that act or omission; and

(c) was not in any way knowingly concerned in, or party to, that act or omission (whether directly or indirectly and whether by any act or omission of the person).

Note: A defendant bears an evidential burden in relation to the matters in this subsection (see section 96 of the Regulatory Powers Act).

3 Subsection 523(1) (after table item 8)

Insert:

4 After subsection 524(4)

Insert:

(4A) Despite subsection (4), the amount to be stated in an infringement notice for the purposes of paragraph 104(1)(f) of the Regulatory Powers Act for the alleged contravention of subsection 186A(1) of this Act by a person must be:

(a) 20 penalty units where the person is an individual; or

(b) 100 penalty units where the person is a body corporate.

5 Subsection 633(2)

Omit "or 186(1)", substitute ", 186(1) or 186A(1)".

6 At the end of subsection 633(2)

Add:

Note 3: Subsection 186A(1) is contravened if a person brings or imports conditionally non-prohibited goods into Australian territory, a condition applying to the goods has not been complied with and the goods are concealed for the purpose of preventing the goods from being found, or preventing the true nature of the goods from being determined, by a biosecurity official.

7 Application provision

The amendments made by this Schedule apply in relation to goods brought or imported into Australian territory on or after the commencement of this Schedule.

I also table a supplementary explanatory memorandum relating to these amendments.

Australia's biosecurity system is facing increased risks due to individuals deliberately concealing goods to evade detection at the Australian border. We've seen this recently. As the minister, I've been very surprised at the lengths to which some people will go to conceal goods that they know very well should not be brought into this country because they expose our agriculture industry to risk. If individuals attempt to conceal goods such as meat and meat products, seeds and plant material, or fresh fruits and vegetables in their luggage, in their clothing or on their person, that is a serious flouting of Australia's strict biosecurity laws. These goods, if undetected, could introduce serious pests and diseases into Australia, devastating our $70.3 billion agricultural export industries, the 1.6 million jobs across the agricultural supply chain and our way of life. Everyone should openly and honestly declare goods such as food items on arrival in Australia so that biosecurity officers can inspect the items and assess the biosecurity risk. The concealment of goods at the border prevents our biosecurity officers from being able to appropriately assess and manage the biosecurity risk associated with those goods.

Under the current penalty scheme, individuals who attempt to conceal high-risk goods, including within their luggage, are subject to the same penalties as individuals who conduct less serious behaviour. I don't think that's right. The new measures in these amendments, therefore, will provide for stiffer penalties where someone demonstrates the more serious behaviour of concealing high-risk goods to evade detection. This may include acts like sewing goods into the lining of a suitcase or placing goods within a container with incorrect markings or labels. This includes a new civil penalty provision that would apply a higher maximum civil penalty of 1,200 penalty units. An individual may also be liable to an infringement notice with an amount payable of $4,440, the highest amount we have ever seen for an infringement notice for an individual under the Biosecurity Act. This is approaching double the current amount of the infringement notices. These stronger penalties will provide an effective deterrent against this serious behaviour, which jeopardises Australia's biosecurity system, while putting the focus on individuals who commit serious noncompliance by attempting to conceal high-risk goods when entering Australia. Thankfully the vast majority of individuals, including those returning from overseas, do the right thing and declare their goods on arrival in Australia. These new measures are designed to target the very small minority who not only fail to declare their goods but who choose to conceal goods to evade detection.

Biosecurity is everyone's responsibility and everybody needs to do the right thing. If they don't, the Australian public would rightfully expect an appropriate punishment. These new measures will provide a more proportionate response that better reflects the seriousness of these contraventions of our biosecurity laws. We will not tolerate behaviour that jeopardises Australia's agricultural industries, our food supply chain, our unique environment and our way of life.