EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Northern Territory National Emergency Response (Other Areas) Declaration 2007 (No. 3)
Summary
The Northern Territory National Emergency Response Act 2007 (the Emergency Response Act) provides for special emergency measures to apply in prescribed areas. These measures relate to the sale and consumption of alcohol, the requirement to audit publicly funded computers and the licensing of community stores. Additional measures dealing with prohibited material, in new Part 10 of the Classification (Publications, Films and Computer Games) Act 1995, also apply in prescribed areas.
The term prescribed area is defined in section 4 of the Emergency Response Act and covers the areas in subsection 4(2). Paragraph 4(4)(a) provides that the Commonwealth Minister may declare that an area in the Northern Territory that would otherwise be covered by subsection 4(2) is not a prescribed area.
The Northern Territory National Emergency Response (Other Areas) Declaration 2007 (No. 3) (the Declaration) provides that certain areas within the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park that are used for parking and for observing the sunset are not prescribed areas. This means that the offence provisions in the Emergency Response Act concerning the consumption, possession or supply of alcohol do not apply in relation to those areas.
Explanation of the provisions
Section 1 of the Declaration provides that it is called the Northern Territory National Emergency Response (Other Areas) Declaration 2007 (No. 3).
Section 2 provides that the Declaration commences on the day after it is registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.
Section 3 provides that each area listed Schedule 1 of the Declaration is not a prescribed area.
Consultation
No community consultation was undertaken in declaring these areas, as the Government had made a decision about areas to be covered by the emergency measures based on concerns about protection of children. Consultation did occur with Land Branch, FACSIA and the NT Government.