EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

Select Legislative Instrument 2007 No. 136

Issued by Authority of the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry

Primary Industries (Customs) Charges Act 1999

Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Act 1991

Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Act 1999

Primary Industries (Customs) Charges Amendment Regulations 2007 (No. 5)

Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Amendment Regulations 2007
(No. 4)

Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Amendment Regulations 2007 (No. 6)

Section 8 of the Primary Industries (Customs) Charges Act 1999 (the Customs Act), section 30 of the Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Act 1991 (the Collection Act) and section 4 of the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Act 1999 (the Excise Act), provide that the
Governor-General may make regulations, not inconsistent with those Acts, prescribing all matters required or permitted by those Acts to be prescribed, or necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to those Acts.

The purpose of the Primary Industries (Customs) Charges Amendment Regulations 2007 (No. 5) (the Customs Regulations) is to cease a charge on the export of certain live animals after 30 June 2007. The charge was imposed to recover the costs incurred by the Government and by Meat and Livestock Australia Ltd (MLA) during the resolution of an incident involving the rejection by the Government of Saudi Arabia of a consignment of Australian live sheep on board the MV Cormo Express in August 2003.

The purpose of the Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Amendment Regulations 2007 (No. 4) is to cease provisions for the collection of the charge after 30 June 2007.

The Customs Regulations and the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Amendment Regulations 2007 (No. 6) also make administrative amendments to repeal superseded regulations relating to cattle transaction levies. These repeals do not alter the amounts of levies collected or the collection arrangements in any way and will take effect after 30 June 2007.

In September 2003, in response to the rejection by Saudi Arabian authorities of a consignment of live sheep in August, the Australian Government purchased the consignment from the importer to ensure it could exercise some level of control over the subsequent action to resettle the sheep.

Following the discharge of the consignment in Eritrea in November, the costs incurred by both the Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry and by MLA was estimated to be approximately $10.3 million.

The Government, MLA and peak industry bodies agreed that the costs should be recovered through an imposition of a specific charge on the export of live animals.

Under existing regulations, the charge ceases to have effect at the end of June 2009. However, it is estimated that these costs will be recovered around June 2007. Once these costs have been recovered there is no further requirement to collect the charge. There are no legal impediments to these regulations being amended to cease the charge from 30 June 2007.

Details of the Regulations are provided in the Attachment.

There is a statutory consultation requirement under clause 13 of Schedule 14 to the Customs Act for consultation to take place with an industry body before regulations can be made if such an industry body was declared under clause 12 of that Schedule. There is no such declared body for the livestock export industry, however, the relevant industry bodies, MLA and the Australian Livestock Export Corporation Limited (LiveCorp), have been made aware of the intention to cease the charge and they have not objected to the proposal.  

A regulatory impact analysis indicated that a Regulatory Impact Statement and a Cost Recovery Impact Statement were not required on the basis that: terminating the charge will reduce the burden on industry and the proposed regulatory amendments are minor and machinery in nature.

ATTACHMENT

DETAILS OF THE PRIMARY INDUSTRIES (CUSTOMS) CHARGES AMENDMENT REGULATIONS 2007 (No. 5)

 Item [1] Schedule 3. This item provides that Schedule 3 to the Primary Industries (Customs) Charges Regulations 2000 is repealed. This Schedule was only effective from 1 January to 31 December 2006.

Item [2] Schedule 14, Part 6. This item provides that the charge to which Part 6 of Schedule 14 to the Primary Industries (Customs) Charges Regulations 2000 relates, is ceased. The charge on cattle, sheep and goats was imposed under this part to recover the costs incurred by the Commonwealth and Meat and Livestock Australia Ltd in resolving the live sheep issue on board on board the MV Cormo Express.

DETAILS OF THE PRIMARY INDUSTRIES LEVIES AND CHARGES COLLECTION AMENDMENT REGULATIONS 2007 (No. 4)

Item [1] Schedule 37, clause 8.1, note. This item replaces the Note to Part 6 of Schedule 14 to the Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Regulations 1991 to reflect that the charge, to which this Part relates, ceases to be in force after 30 June 2007.

DETAILS OF THE PRIMARY INDUSTRIES (EXCISE) LEVIES AMENDMENT REGULATIONS 2007 (No. 6 )

Item [1] Schedule 3. This item provides that Schedule 3 to the Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Regulations 1999 is repealed.  This Schedule was only effective from 1 January to 31 December 2006.