EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Issued by the authority of the Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation
Border Protection Legislation Amendment (Deterrence of Illegal Foreign Fishing) Act 2005
Subsection 2(1) of the Border Protection Legislation Amendment (Deterrence of Illegal Foreign Fishing) Act 2005 (the Act) provides that Part 2 and Division 1 of Part 3 of Schedule 1 to the Act commence on a day to be fixed by Proclamation. Subsection 2(1) also provides that Part 2 of Schedule 2 commences at the same time as Part 2 of Schedule 1. However, if any of the provisions of Schedule 1 do not commence within the period of 6 months beginning on the day on which the Act receives the Royal Assent, they commence on the first day after the end of that period. The Act received Royal Assent on 23 August 2005.
The Proclamation fixed 30 November 2005 as the day on which Part 2 and Division 1 of Part 3 of Schedule 1 (and, as a consequence, Part 2 of Schedule 2) to the Act commence. All other provisions of the Act commenced on 23 August 2005.
The Act ensures consistency of detention arrangements for illegal foreign fishers under fisheries and immigration legislation. Schedule 1 to the Act provides for a revised detention regime for illegal foreign fishers apprehended in Australian waters that will allow the seamless transition from fisheries detention to immigration detention and ensure that detainees are appropriately cared for during the transfer period. Detainees held under fisheries detention and immigration detention may be accommodated in a single detention facility, so it is important that officers can be authorised under both sets of legislation to undertake detention functions and that the same strict procedural rules apply. Schedule 2 to the Act enables Australia to effectively comply with its obligations as part of the Torres Strait Treaty between Australia and Papua New Guinea. Schedule 2 extends the use of the enforcement visa regime in the Migration Act 1958 to illegal foreign fishers apprehended in the Torres Strait Protected Zone so that a consistent regime applies as set out in the Fisheries Management Act 1991.
The delayed commencement allowed time for subordinate legislation and operational requirements to be put in place by the Australian Fisheries Management Authority and the Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs regarding the appointment of detention officers, authorisation of officers and implementation of the enforcement visa regime in the Torres Strait.