EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
STATUTORY RULES 1982 No. 161
Issued by the Authority of the Minister of State for Home Affairs and Environment for and on behalf of the Minister of State for Primary Industry.
LIVE-STOCK SLAUGHTER LEVY REGULATIONS
(AMENDMENT)
These regulations are designed to amend the existing regulations under the Live-stock Slaughter Levy Act 1964 so as to increase the amounts levied per head of livestock.
The Live-stock Slaughter Levy Act imposes a levy on the slaughter of cattle, calves, bobby calves, buffaloes, sheep, lambs and goats. The levy consists of 4 components, which respectively raise funds for the following purposes:
(a) financing of the Australian Meat and Live-stock Corporation (AMLC)
(b) General meat research
(c) Meat processing research
(d) Bovine disease eradication (only cattle, calves, bobby calves and buffaloes are levied for this purpose).
The Act specifies the maximum amounts per head which may be levied under the various components in respect of each category of livestock. The operative amounts are prescribed by regulation and section 8 of the Act empowers the Governor-General to do this.
Section 8 also requires that before making such regulations, the Governor-General shall take into consideration any recommendations made to the Minister for Primary Industry by the AMLC. The AMLC is in turn required to consult the industry Consultative Groups established under its enabling Act and, in the case of research components, also the Australian Meat Research Committee.
The AMLC has recommended to the Minister for Primary Industry that those components of the levy which raise funds for the AMLC and for both general meat research and meat processing research be increased with effect from 1 July 1982. The proposed increases are:
(a) in the case of the AMLC component - 5.866%
(b) in the case of the general meat research component 40% (for adult cattle and buffaloes only; other categories to remain unchanged)
(c) in the case of the meat processing research component - 50%.
The increases are required in order to maintain the present level of AMLC and research activities. The need for greater increases in the research components is due to the fact that the present rates have remained unaltered for more than 10 years, during which time there was a substantial rise in costs.
Before the AMLC made its recommendations to the Minister, it duly consulted all of the industry Consultative Groups. These Groups are:
(1) the Live-stock Producers Consultative Group;
(2) the Meat Exporters and Abattoir Operators Consultative Group; and
(3) the Live-stock Exporters Consultative Group.