THE Industry, Innovation, Science and Resources Committee will host a discussion involving several prominent organisations in the emerging Australian space industry, including the newly established Australian Space Agency.

The discussion will be held in a roundtable format featuring a number of industry participants, including Lockheed Martin, the world’s largest Defence contractor, and Airbus Australia.  

Members of the public are welcome to attend or listen in as the hearing will be broadcast live. RSVP to the Standing Committee on Industry, Innovation, Science and Resources, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Other participants include the Department of Defence, Myriota and Professor Russell Boyce, Chair of Space Engineering at the University of New South Wales, Canberra.

Public briefing details: 10:30am to 12:30pm, Wednesday, 20 February 2019, Committee Room 1R3, Parliament House, Canberra.

The hearing will be broadcast live at www.aph.gov.au/live

ends

THE Queensland Resources Council (QRC) has welcomed the Australian Government’s commitment to prioritise critical minerals projects in its latest round of Cooperative Research Centre Project (CRC-P) funding.

QRC chief executive Ian Macfarlane said the investment of up to $20 million for critical minerals projects would help encourage new exploration, which is essential to secure the resources jobs of the future.

“Queensland is one of Australia’s heavy hitters when it comes to resources investment. As a result, our sector supports more than 316,000 jobs and creates $62.9 billion in value to the state’s economy,” Mr Macfarlane said.

“Our commodities of coal, LNG, bauxite and zinc are in demand in major international markets and as a result the resources sector is on track to deliver a record $5.2 billion to the Queensland budget in royalty taxes this year.

“Those commodities will continue to underwrite our economy for decades into the future.  But Queensland’s potential is made all the richer through our new prospects for exploration in critical minerals including rare earths, scandium and tin.

“Exploring new areas, as well as the development of the North West Minerals Province, will create a new wave of economic opportunities for Queensland.

“This CRC-P funding should encourage more exploration and development in projects that deliver on our state’s potential.

“The most recent Queensland Exploration Council (QEC) Scorecard found the highest level of sentiment in the industry since the Scorecard began in 2011.

“This is good news for all Queenslanders, including in our regions.

“We can’t take our success for granted. The resources industry will continue to work with all levels of Government to deliver the policy and regulatory certainty that is essential for investor confidence and to translate potential into projects.

“A strong resources sector means a strong and prosperous Queensland.”

www.qrc.org.au

ends

THE Joint Standing Committee on Northern Australia is holding a public hearing in Canberra on Friday, February 15, 2019, as part of its Inquiry into the Opportunities and Challenges of the Engagement of Traditional Owners in the Economic Development of Northern Australia.

The Committee Chair, Warren Entsch MP, stated that, "The Committee is interested to hear from Federal Government agencies about how Traditional Owners in Northern Australia can be supported to take advantage of economic opportunities. In particular, the Committee will examine the role of representative bodies, government entities, and any legislative, administrative and funding constraints to the economic engagement of Traditional Owners."

The hearing program and further information about the Committee’s inquiry is available on the Committee’s website: www.aph.gov.au/jscna. The hearing will be broadcast live at aph.gov.au/live.  

PUBLIC HEARING DETAILS:

Canberra

9.15am to 11.45am, Friday, February 15, 2019

Committee Room 1R2, Australian Parliament House

ends

LEGISLATION to implement the recommendations of the banking Royal Commission should be treated with the same diligence and rigor as any other new bills to be brought before parliament, Financial Services Council CEO Sally Loane said today.

In Canberra today, Ms Loane said the FSC understood the appetite for immediate reform and was broadly supportive of the Commission’s recommendations.

“With the release of the final report, there is a real and justifiable desire to get on with the job of strengthening and improving our financial system,” Ms Loane said.

“There are already several important superannuation reform bills languishing in Parliament that have not yet been passed into law. The FSC would like these passed without delay.

“The next tranche of financial system reform needs to be treated with the same rigor and scrutiny as any other legislation or regulation would receive.

“While we must move quickly to repair the sector’s damaged reputation and ensure that consumers are able to trust the people, products and services in our sector, it was only eight days ago that the final report of the Royal Commission was released by the Government. 

“In some important areas of reform, further information has been either been sought by Treasury or further analysis is required. We need comprehensive industry consultation to ensure that the unintended consequences of any technical changes are identified and dealt with.

“We cannot end up in a situation where well-intended reforms deliver poor customer outcomes down the track. It makes no sense to ram through new reforms in a way that could damage our economy, hurt small business or harm consumers.”

About the Financial Services Council

The Financial Services Council (FSC) is a leading peak body which sets mandatory Standards and develops policy for more than 100 member companies in Australia’s largest industry sector, financial services. Full Members represent Australia’s retail and wholesale funds management businesses, superannuation funds, life insurers, financial advisory networks and licensed trustee companies. Supporting Members represent the professional services firms such as ICT, consulting, accounting, legal, recruitment, actuarial and research houses. The financial services industry is responsible for investing almost $3 trillion on behalf of more than 14.8 million Australians. The pool of funds under management is larger than Australia’s GDP and the capitalisation of the Australian Securities Exchange, and is the fourth largest pool of managed funds in the world.

ENDS