Primary Industries (Customs) Charges Amendment Regulations 2001 (No. 2) 2001 No. 94
EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Statutory Rules 2001 No. 94
Issued by the Authority of the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Act 1999
Primary Industries (Customs) Charges Act 1999
Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Amendment Regulations 2001 (No. 3)
Primary Industries (Customs) Charges Amendment Regulations 2001 (No. 2)
Section 8 of the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Act 1999 and Section 8 of the Primary Industries (Customs) Charges Act 1999 provide that the Governor-General may make regulations required or permitted to be prescribed or necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to the Acts.
These Regulations amend both the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Regulations 1999 and the Primary Industries (Customs) Charges Regulations 2000 to lower the rate of wool levy and export charge imposed on wool from 3 per cent to 2 per cent from 1 July 2001.
Clause 14 of part 4 to Schedule 27 of the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Act 1999 and clause 13 of part 4 to Schedule 14 of the Primary Industries (Customs) Charges Act 1999 provide that if the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (the Minister) has declared a body to be the designated body (or bodies) in relation to a particular product, then before the Governor-General makes a regulation in relation to the product, the Minister must take into consideration any relevant recommendation made to the Minister by the designated body (or bodies). Australian Wool Innovation Pty Ltd (AWI) has been declared by the Minister to be the "research body" for the purposes of Division 7 of the Wool Services Privatisation Act 2000 (the WSP Act). Section 32, Division 7 of the WSP Act further provides that the "research body" is taken to be a. designated body in relation to wool levy for the purposes of the rate setting clauses, being clause 14 of schedule 27 to the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Act 1999 and clause 13 of schedule 14 to the Primary Industries (Customs) Charges Act 1999. AWI has not made a relevant recommendation in relation to the levy rate. However, in the Explanatory Memorandum to the WSP Act, the Government stated its intention to lower the wool levy rate from 3 per cent to 2 per cent in line with the WoolPoll 2000 result.
WoolPoll 2000, conducted in March last year, received votes representing the majority of Australian wool production and the result showed a clear preference for a 2 per cent wool tax rate. In response to WoolPoll 2000, the Government implemented an interim wool tax rate of 3 per cent from 1 July 2000 to cover the costs of converting the Australian Wool Research and Promotion Organisation (AWRAP) into a Corporations Law company, Australian Wool Services Limited and its subsidiaries. On 13 December 2000, regulations were made to convert the wool tax arrangements to a wool levy administered by Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry -Australia's Levies and Revenue Service effective from 1 January 2001. By lowering the rate, the Government will have fulfilled its promise to do so as soon as the costs of transition have been fully met.
The Minister has received advice from Australian Wool Services that the estimated transition costs of the Australian Wool Services Limited group of companies will have been met by collection of the 1 per cent levy set aside for conversion up to 30 June 2001. Therefore, the rate of wool levy and export charge imposed on wool producers will be lowered from 3 per cent to 2 per cent, in line with the result of WoolPoll 2000, effective from 1 July 2001.
Details of the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Amendment Regulations 2001 (No. 3) are at Attachment A; the Primary Industries (Customs) Charges Amendment Regulations 2001 (No. 2) are at Attachment B.
The regulations will commence on 1 July 2001.
ATTACHMENT A
PRIMARY INDUSTRIES (EXCISE) LEVIES AMENDMENT REGULATIONS 2001 (No. 3)
Regulation 1 gives the name of the regulations as the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Amendment Regulations 2001 (No. 3).
Regulation 2 gives the date of commencement as 1 July 2001.
Regulation 3 provides that Schedule 1 amends the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Regulations 1999.
Schedule 1 Amendment
Item 1 amends Schedule 27, Part 2, clause 2.3 by omitting 3 per cent and inserting 2 per cent as the operable wool levy rate.
ATTACHMENT B
PRIMARY INDUSTRIES (CUSTOMS) CHARGES AMENDMENT REGULATIONS 2001 (No. 2)
Regulation 1 gives the name of the regulations as the Primary Industries (Customs) Charges Amendment Regulations 2001 (No. 2).
Regulation 2 gives the date of commencement as 1 July 2001.
Regulation 3 provides that Schedule 1 amends the Primary Industries (Customs) Charges Regulations 2000.
Schedule 1 Amendment
Item 1 amends Schedule 14, Part 1, clause 1.2 by omitting 3 per cent and inserting 2 per cent as the operable rate of export charge imposed on wool exported from Australia.