VECCI Chief Executive Mark Stone has welcomed the release of the issues papers regarding Australia’s Workplace Relations Framework.

"It is positive that the papers address areas of widespread concern identified by business, including the lack of flexibility in Australian workplace relations laws and the fragmented nature of these laws across jurisdictions, the adversarial nature of the current system, the high cost imposed on business and the absence of productivity improvement as a central feature of enterprise agreements," Mr Stone said.

"The key outcomes of the review must be the creation of a simpler, fairer and more efficient Workplace Relations Framework that spurs economic growth, increased productivity and improved business competitiveness and certainty.

"Job creation must be the priority as metropolitan and regional Victorian communities are faced with significant unemployment and industries continue to transition in the face of strong international competition," Mr Stone said.

"The operation of penalty rates needs to be reviewed to enable small business to employ more people and reflect the changing nature of the economy and labour market where the growth of the service sector, part time and casual work, extended trading hours and flexibility are the norm for many.

"We look forward to the review consulting thoroughly with business and encourage Victorian business to take this opportunity to make submissions on specific issues of concern."

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The Victorian Employers' Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VECCI) is the most influential body for employers in Victoria, informing and servicing more than 15,000 members, customers and clients around the state.

vecci.org.au

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THE Australian Government is taking another important step to improve water quality in the Great Barrier Reef with applications for the $5 million Reef Trust Tender—Wet Tropics programme now open.

“Over two hundred farmers registered an expression of interest last year and can now apply for funds to improve their farm’s nitrogen use efficiency,” said Mr Entsch.

“Farmers are encouraged to take advantage of this opportunity to submit a tender application to trial improvements in their fertiliser management practices.”

This is one of a number of programmes by the Australian Government, in partnership with other agencies, industry and communities, to achieve a common goal – protecting and managing the reef for current and future generations.

“This is an innovative approach to help farmers trial improved fertiliser management, leading to  cost-effective and long-term reduction in nitrogen fertiliser runoff entering the waters of the Great Barrier Reef,” said Minister Hunt.

“Nitrogen runoff from farms is a major factor affecting the health of the Great Barrier Reef and is linked to outbreaks of the damaging crown-of-thorns starfish.”

The programme is unique in its flexibility, allowing farmers to put forward a proposal and asking price to the Australian Government that meets their individual business needs and circumstances.

Terrain NRM, the programme’s delivery partner, is available to provide registered farmers with information and on ground support where needed.

Cane farmers who registered an expression of interest are invited to submit a tender application by 19 February 2015.

Tenders will be evaluated based on value for money and site visits may be conducted as part of the assessment process. Successful farmers will receive payments to implement their new fertiliser management practices from April this year.

The online tender application form, the programme’s guidelines and further information is available at:www.environment.gov.au/reef-trust-tender or www.terrain.org.au/Projects/Agriculture-and-Innovation/Reef-Trust.

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AS RECOMMENDED by an independent peer review, a Technical Advisory Forum comprised of leading scientists and statisticians will review and provide advice on Australia’s official temperature data set. The Technical Advisory Forum is scheduled to meet in March.

The Bureau of Meteorology is responsible for the climate record, and as a trusted and respected organisation, welcomes robust assessment of its work in order to maintain the highest levels of public confidence.

The establishment of this Forum will provide an independent framework for quality assurance tests and analysis of the Bureau’s data sets for greater transparency.

The Bureau’s climate information services were subject to a rigorous independent peer-review in 2011. The Review was conducted by a panel of international experts and found the Bureau's data and analysis methods met world’s best practice.

The Bureau’s methods and processes are published on its website, in addition to the findings of the 2011 Review.

An important recommendation of this review was that a Technical Advisory Group should be established "in order to review progress on the development and operation of the ACORN-SAT data-set."

The establishment of this forum is in line with this recommendation in the Report of the Independent Peer Review of ACORN-SAT data-sets.

The Australian Climate Observations Reference Network - Surface Air Temperature (ACORN-SAT) dataset is an important part of Australia’s official climate record. It has been developed for monitoring climate variability and change in Australia and is held by the Bureau of Meteorology.

The members of the Technical Advisory Forum are:

www.bom.gov.au

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