MARITIME workers will rally outside The Grand Hotel in Gladstone tomorrow morning (Monday March 18), urging immediate and decisive action from the Queensland Government to deliver a boost to local jobs, the economy, and the environment by supporting an enhanced coastal shipping industry.

A public hearing of the Inquiry into a Sustainable Queensland Intrastate Shipping Industry will be held in the MacArthur Room of The Grand Hotel from 9am, which the Maritime Union of Australia will use to outline a blueprint for reform.

More than 11,000 voyages are made by large ships along the Queensland coast each year, carrying 23 million tonnes of cargo between Queensland ports, yet the vast majority of these voyages take place on international 'Flag of Convenience' ships that use foreign crews on poor wages and conditions.

In a comprehensive submission to the Inquiry, the MUA urges the Queensland Government to turn this situation around by ensuring coastal transport and energy infrastructure delivers for Queensland by providing local jobs and protecting the state’s precious coastline. The recommendations include:

• restoring a strengthened Restricted Use Flag to explicitly provide for the economic regulation of foreign ships operating in Queensland;
• legislating to quarantine known large intra-state shipping routes for Australian ships;
• reform of Australian coastal shipping legislation to ensure that regular shipping between Queensland and other states takes place on Australian ships with decent working conditions; and
• support the creation of a Queensland coastal shipping service tailored to our needs.

The union said these proposed reforms would increase local jobs, ensure shipping off the Queensland coast and through the Great Barrier Reef is of the highest standard, take trucks off our roads, and reduce carbon emissions by ensuring domestic vessels conform to the highest emissions standards.

The union will also highlight a number of case studies showing the need for reform, including:

• Rio Tinto ships millions of tonnes of bauxite from Weipa to Gladstone each year. In 2010, the company agreed to carry up to 80 per cent of this cargo on Australian crewed ships, yet in the past decade the percentage of bauxite cargoes on Australian-crewed ships declined to just one-third;
• Origin Energy relies on coastal shipping for its LPG distribution network. It charters two LPG tankers that have worked continuously in Australia since they were built in 2008. For this entire time, Origin has avoided having Australian working conditions and an Australian crew on board.
• Orica has been using the same ship to transfer ammonia from Newcastle to Gladstone to make explosives for the mining industry since 2010, but has never employed Australian crew.

The MUA’s submission to the inquiry is available at: http://www.mua.org.au/queenslandshippinginquiry/

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THE National Congress of Australia’s First Peoples has endorsed the landmark decision of the High Court to compensate Ngaliwurru and Nungali peoples for the extinguishment of their non-exclusive ­native title rights and for associated cultural loss. 

For many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, there is an inextricable link between culture, well-being, nature and land and/or waterways.  The forced breaking of these bonds has often had tragic consequences leading to inter-generational trauma and hardship. 

“While no amount of money can adequately compensate for cultural loss and its consequences, the High Court’s recognition of the implications caused by incursions and infringements on the fundamentals of our cultures are of some comfort.” National Congress co-chair Jackie Huggins said.

“Further, the justices’ willingness to uphold a decision to make some sort of recompense should assist in the long path to reconciliation between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and non-Indigenous Australians,” Dr Huggins said.

National Congress co-chair Rod Little said, “Historically, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have a strong track record of generosity in sharing our lands and waterways. 

“We have endured forced removals from our lands, and a very slow and often reluctant return thereof, and even then, only to those who can show a continuing relationship with specific locations.  Native title legislation contains a great many exclusions for claims, and our rights have been successively weakened since the initial legislation following the Mabo decision. This ruling goes some way to restoring our rights and healing past injustices.” he said.

Mr Little said National Congress stood ready to assist CoAG in the negotiation of principles to avoid unnecessarily protracted and expensive litigation on a case-by-case basis. "It may be beneficial for these discussions also to involve the business sector so that we can work together as a nation"

"Native title land and water rights may be put as a discrete matter in themselves but they do have a connection to current discussions of constitutional recognition, and the agreement making aspects of the Statement of the Heart, issued at Uluru in 2017.

"There is a growing groundswell of support to close the gap between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and non-Indigenous Australians in health, education, prosperity. Cultural well-being is inextricably linked to the achievement of these goals. We look forward and hope for further actions that promote reconciliation."

www.nationalcongress.com.au

ABOUT NATIONAL CONGRESS OF AUSTRALIA’S FIRST PEOPLES
 
National Congress is the peak organisation representing the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. National Congress was established following extensive consultations with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and leaders and has represented our peoples at the federal level since 2010. It represents close to 10,000 individual members from across Australia as well as over 180 peak and other Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisations.

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THE Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman, Kate Carnell, has congratulated the National Australia Bank’s lead in expanding its definition of small business to capture total lending of up to $5 million -- higher than the aggregate $3 million in the Banking Code of Practice 2019.

“It’s definitely a step in the right direction, although we continue to call on the Australian Banking Authority (ABA) to adopt the Hayne recommendation in full," Ms Carnell said.

The full definition recommendation is: 'Recommendation 1.10 – Definition of ‘small business’. The ABA should amend the definition of ‘small business’ in the Banking Code so that the Code applies to any business or group employing fewer than 100 full-time equivalent employees, where the loan applied for is less than $5 million.'

“We feel up to $5 million is appropriate for many small businesses especially capital intensive businesses and family enterprises, such as farms and manufacturers," Ms Carnell said.

“Anything below $5 million is clearly out-of-date and does not represent the true lending picture of Australia’s small businesses. Small businesses are the engine room of the Australian economy and it’s vital they are able to grow and to employ.

“I applaud NAB for taking a leadership position and urge other banks to follow," she said.

“The ABA should immediately accept the Haynes Recommendation 1.10 and amend the Banking Code to ensure more small businesses are covered.”

www.asbfeo.gov.au

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THE LATEST Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS)  data shows that the rate of strikes and illegal stoppages in the construction industry has doubled, accounting for almost half of the entire Australian total, according to Master Builders Australia.

“Today’s data is clear and independent evidence that the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC) must be retained to tackle the worsening behaviour from building union bullies,” Master Builders Australia CEO Denita Wawn said. 

“It’s the community that pays the price,” she said. 

“Just when people are feeling like the cost of everything is going up constructions unions are forcing them to pay up to 30 percent more for their schools, hospitals and roads,” Ms Wawn said. 

“The construction unions’ culture of bullying is getting worse which is exactly why we need the ABCC,” she said. 

The construction industry had the highest number of working days lost due to industrial disputation over the December quarter 2018 (13,200) – accounting for 43 percent of all days lost to disputes – and almost double the amount in the previous quarter (6,900). 

While this is lower than the average days lost when the ABCC was abolished (around 20,000), it remains far higher than the average when the ABCC first existed (6,700). 

“Days lost to strikes in construction have doubled, and we now represent almost half of the national total across all sectors,” Ms Wawn said. 

“There is no hiding from the fact that strikes and disputes in construction are getting worse, with building unions showing no sign of wanting to change culture and play by the rules just like everyone else.

“This shows that while the ABCC is making a positive impact, it still has much work to do tackle the culture of building union bullies who appear to believe they are above the law,” Ms Wawn said. 

“The ABCC must be retained until building unions learn to obey the law like everyone else."

 www.masterbuilders.com.au

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