EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Statutory Rules 1986 No 89
Customs (Prohibited Exports) Regulations (Amendment)
Issued by Authority of the Minister of State for Industry, Technology and Commerce
Earlier this year, the Government was informed that a lithographic stone used to print a rare colonial era Western Australian postage stamp might be sold overseas, which would effectively frustrate attempts by both the Commonwealth Government and the Government of Western Australia to obtain the stone for public exhibition in Australia.
As lithographic stones were generally used for the production of postage stamps during the colonial and early post-Federation periods of Australia, the Government has decided to impose an export control on lithographic stones that were used in the production of postage stamps in Australia, to assist Commonwealth and State bodies in their efforts to obtain and exhibit these historically significant philatelic objects in public collections in Australia.
The regulations provide for this export control as follows:
(a) Regulation 1 is a technical drafting amendment, which replaces references to the Department of Home Affairs and Environment in Regulation 13A of the Customs (Prohibited Exports) Regulations with references to Arts, Heritage and Environment, to reflect the name change of that Department.
(b) Regulation 2 amends the Twelfth Schedule to the Customs (Prohibited Exports) Regulations by adding a new item to the list of those goods the exportation of which is prohibited, unless the approval of the Minister for Arts, Heritage and Environment (or an authorised person) to the exportation of the goods is produced to a Collector. The new item relates to:
• lithographic stones that were used in the production of postage stamps in Australia.
The Minister for Home Affairs and Environment agrees with the proposed regulations.