Anne Urquhart (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I present the second report of the 2022 Selection of Bills Committee. I seek leave to have the report incorporated in Hansard.

Leave granted.

The report read as follows—

SELECTION OF BILLS COMMITTEE

REPORT NO. 2 OF 2022

28 July 2022

MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE

Senator Anne Urquhart (Government Whip, Chair)

Senator Wendy Askew (Opposition Whip)

Senator Ross Cadell (The Nationals Whip)

Senator Pauline Hanson (Pauline Hanson's One Nation Whip)

Senator Nick McKim (Australian Greens Whip)

Senator Ralph Babet

Senator the Hon. Anthony Chisholm

Senator the Hon. Katy Gallagher

Senator Tammy Tyrrell

Senator David Pocock

Secretary: Tim Bryant

02 6277 3020

SELECTION OF BILLS COMMITTEE

REPORT NO. 2 OF 2022

1. The committee met in private session on Wednesday, 27 July 2022 at 7.31 pm.

2. The committee recommends that—

(a) the provisions of the Aged Care Amendment (Implementing Care Reform) Bill 2022 be referred immediately to the Community Affairs Legislation Committee for inquiry and report by 31 August 2022 (see appendix 1 for a statement of reasons for referral);

(b) the provisions of the Climate Change Bill 2022 and the Climate Change (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2022 be referred immediately to the Environment and Communications Legislation Committee for inquiry and report by 31 August 2022 (see appendix 2 for a statement of reasons for referral);

(c) the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Amendment (Save the Koala) Bill 2021 be referred immediately to the Environment and Communications Legislation Committee for inquiry and report by 8 February 2023 (see appendix 3 for a statement of reasons for referral);

(d) the Fair Work Amendment (Equal Pay for Equal Work) Bill 2022 be referred immediately to the Education and Employment Legislation Committee for inquiry and report by 24 October 2022 (see appendix 4 for a statement of reasons for referral);

(e) the provisions of the Jobs and Skills Australia Bill 2022 and the Jobs and Skills Australia (National Skills Commissioner Repeal) Bill 2022 be referred immediately to the Education and Employment Legislation Committee but was unable to reach agreement on a reporting date (see appendix 5 for a statement of reasons for referral);

(f) the provisions of the Social Services and Other Legislation Amendment (Lifting the Income Limit for the Commonwealth Seniors Health Card) Bill 2022 be referred immediately to the Community Affairs Legislation Committee for inquiry and report by 24 August 2022; and

(g) the provisions of the Treasury Laws Amendment (Electric Car Discount) Bill 2022 be referred immediately to the Economics Legislation Committee for inquiry and report by 21 September 2022 (see appendix 6 for a statement of reasons for referral).

3. The committee recommends that the following bills not be referred to committees:

4. The committee deferred consideration of the following bills to its next meeting:

(Anne Urquhart)

Chair

28 July 2022

Appendix 1

SELECTION OF BILLS COMMITTEE

P roposal to refer a bill to a committee

Name of bill:

Aged Care Amendment (ImplementingCare Reform) Bill 2022

Reasons for referral/principal issues for consideration:

Substantive Bill

Possible submissions or evidence from:

Many Commonwealth and Aged Care Providers Unions

Employment providers

Committee to which bill is to be referred:

Community Affairs Legislation Committee

Possible hearing date(s):

16/8/2022

Possible reporting date:

31/8/2022

(signed)

Wendy Askew

Appendix 2

SELECTION OF BILLS COMMITTEE

Proposal to refer a bill to a committe e

Name of bill:

Climate Change Bill 2022 Climate Change (Consequential Amendments) Bi11•2022

Reasons for referral/principal issues for consideration:

Substantive Bill

Wide ranging consultations are required

Possible submissions or evidence from:

Committee to which bill is to be referred:

Environment and Communications Legislation Committee

Possible hearing date(s):

Possible reporting date:

31/8/22

(signed)

Wendy Askew

Appendix 3

SELECTION OF BILLS COMMITTEE

Proposal to refer a bill to a committee

Name of bill:

Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Amendment (Save the Koala) Bill 2021

Reasons for referral/principal issues for consideration:

To hear from stakeholders, experts and community on the Bill, and the impacts of clearing of critical habitat.

Possible submissions or evidence from:

Environmental stakeholders and experts.

Committee to which bill is to be referred:

Environment and Communications References Committee

Possible hearing date(s):

October

Possible reporting date:

8 February 2023

(signed)

Nick McKim

Appendix 4

SELECTION OF BILLS COMMITTEE

Proposal to refer a bill to a comm i ttee

Name of bill:

Fair Work Amendment (Equal Pay for Equal Work) Bill 2022

Reasons for referral/principal issues for consideration:

Raises important issues which should be the subject of inquiry

Possible submissions or evidence from:

Workers who have experienced hardship and unfair treatment under labour hire contracts in a public hearing in the Hunter Valley

Committee to which bill is to be referred:

Education and Employment Legislation Committee.

Possible hearing date(s):

Possible reporting date:

24th October 2022

(signed)

Senator Malcolm Roberts

Appendix 5

SELECTION OF BILLS COMMITTEE

Proposal to refer a bill to a committee

Name of bill:

Jobs and Skills Australia Bill 2022 Jobs and Skills Australia (National Skills Commissioner Repeal) Bill 2022

Reasons for referral/principal issues for consideration:

Substantive Bill

Possible submissions or evidence from:

Committee to which bill is to be referred:

Education and Employment Legislation Committee

Possible hearing date(s}:

16/8/2022

Possible reporting date:

23/9/2022

(signed)

Wendy Askew

Appendix 6

SELECTION OF BILLS COMMITTEE

Proposal to refer a bill to a committee

Name of bill:

Treasury Laws Amendment (Electric Car Discount) Bill 2022

Reasons for referral/principal issues for consideration:

Substantive Bill

Possible submissions or evidence from:

Committee to which bill is to be referred:

Economics Legislation Committee

Possible hearing date(s):

21/9/22

Possible reporting date:

(signed)

Wendy Askew

I move:

That the report be adopted.

Anne Ruston (SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

At the end of the motion, add:

"and, in respect of the provisions of the Jobs and Skills Australia Bill 2022 and the Jobs and Skills Australia (National Skills Commissioner Repeal) Bill 2022, the Education and Employment Legislation Committee report by 23 September 2022".

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Has that amendment been circulated?

Anne Ruston (SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Yes.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator McKim, were you seeking the call?

Nick McKim (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Yes, I was. I want to make a few observations about that amendment in the debate. From the Australian Greens' point of view, we're not too sure what the fuss is about, here, in terms of Labor's position, and we will be supporting the opposition's amendment.

Eight weeks is not a particularly long period for an inquiry. These bills create an important agency, and it's important that we get this agency right. The Senate absolutely needs to do its job here. We make the very reasonable observation that the government has a jobs summit coming up on 1 and 2 September. Obviously that's a really important summit, and we want to understand what the outcomes are from that really important jobs summit in time for those outcomes to be fed into the committee's considerations and, ultimately, the deliberations of the Senate around this legislation. We believe that the outcomes of the jobs summit should have the capacity to help shape Jobs and Skills Australia, the agency established by this legislation.

I want to make a couple of very quick and preliminary observations on Jobs and Skills Australia as proposed in this legislation. There is no mechanism beyond a consultation mechanism for stakeholders' voices to be heard and acted on, and we do note this is a big step backwards from previous Australian Labor Party machinery that has empowered and resourced diverse sectoral voices at the table. We also note that the advice parameters appear, as a preliminary assessment, to be very narrowly focused around data and analysis.

We want this inquiry to have the capacity to consider and explore those issues and any other issues that stakeholders bring up. Jobs and Skills Australia will be a critical agency and the Senate has to get it right. The Greens believe that an inquiry that reports, as is proposed by the opposition, on 23 September strikes the right balance between getting it done and making sure it's done right.

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This was an issue we discussed last night that we weren't able to reach agreement on. The government's preferred position is that we refer, but with a reporting date so that we can start considering this bill during the September sittings. We would facilitate briefings and the opportunities for crossbenchers and the opposition to discuss that legislation with ministers, but our preference is to have this legislation ready to debate in September. We don't think it is that complex, actually, to establish Jobs and Skills Australia. It is a key commitment of ours that we took to the election, and we want to get cracking on it.

If the committee doesn't report until the end of September, then we potentially won't be able to program this in the October sittings, when we have the budget and then budget estimates. Then we're leaving this right until the end of the year, when we have a range of other priorities, before we're able to establish this agency. I think, if the committee wants the referral, then the committee should get to work between now and the next sitting. It's a month. You can conduct a pretty reasonable inquiry in a month's time.

That is certainly the government's preference. I can see from contributions from others, though, that we don't have the numbers to stop that referral to the 28th, but our strong preference would be that people consider dealing with this as soon as possible so the legislation is available for debate in this chamber in the September sittings.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question is that the amendment as moved by Senator Ruston be agreed to.

Question agreed to.

Original question, as amended, agreed to.