EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
STATUTORY RULES 1986 No. 41
Issued by the Authority of the Minister for Primary Industry
RURAL INDUSTRIES RESEARCH REGULATIONS (AMENDMENT)
The Rural Industries Research Act 1985 is concerned with the organisation and administrative arrangements under which Government and industry monies are allocated to rural industry research. Funds are allocated by Research Councils or State Research Committees representing each of the industries for which research levies are collected under Commonwealth legislation. The objects of this legislation are to ensure expenditure on rural industry research increases the commercial returns to producers and to improve accountability for expenditure on rural research and development.
Section 62 of the Rural Industries Research Act 1985 (the Act) provides that the Governor-General may make regulations prescribing all matters necessary or convenient to be prescribed for giving effect to the Act.
The Act provides for a Research Fund and Research Council to be established for Barley, Chicken Meat, Cotton, Dairy, Dried Fruits, Honey, Oilseeds, Pigs, Poultry, Tobacco and Wheat. It also provides for a Fund by the name of the Australian Special Rural Research Fund and a Council by the name of the Australian Special Rural Research Council to be established.
Sub-sections 6(3) and (4) and 11(3) and (4) of the Act provide for the establishment of Research Trust Funds and Research Councils for commodities other than those listed above.
When the Act received Royal Assent on 3 October 1985, there were no statutory research arrangements in place for grain legumes. Legislative research arrangements were subsequently introduced and a Grain Legumes Levy Act 1985 and a Grain Legumes Levy Collection Act 1985 have operated since 1 November 1985. The Governor-General made the Rural Industries Research Regulations on 30 January 1986 prescribing the levy imposed by sub-section 6(1) of the Grain Legumes Levy Act 1985 and establishing the Grain Legumes Research Trust Fund and the Grain Legumes Research Council.
Regulations for the commodities listed above and the Australian Special Rural Research Fund and the Australian Special Rural Research Council are prepared as an amendment to the Rural Industries Research Regulations. They provide for the establishment of Research Trust Funds and Research Councils as listed in Schedule 1 of the Act and State Research Committees as listed in Schedule 2 of the Act by prescribing relevant levies to commence from 1 April 1986. This will continue already established rural research in these commodities.