THE Northern Australia Committee has re-commenced its inquiry into the economic engagement of Traditional Owners.

The inquiry will examine opportunities and challenges associated with land rights, native title and other land-related agreements for the purpose of engaging Traditional Owners in the economic development of Northern Australia.

Committee Chair, Warren Entsch, said that with 78 percent of land in Northern Australia claimed or recognised under statutory land rights or native title, the resources available to Indigenous Australians are significant.

"The Committee wants to find ways to work with Traditional Owners so they can make better use of their resources, which will work to the advantage of Indigenous peoples while contributing to the economic development of Northern Australia," Mr Entsch said.

He urged a greater focus on capacity building in grass-roots Indigenous organisations under the land rights and native title regimes.

The inquiry commenced in the last Parliament, and was suspended during the election period. To date, the Committee has received 26 submissions and held one public hearing. 

Submissions are open until Friday, November 15, 2019. 

Further details of the inquiry, including expanded terms of reference, can be found on the Committee’s website.

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THE CHAIR of the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) Capability Review Panel, Professor Graeme Samuel AC, will appear before the House Economics Committee at a public hearing on Wednesday, September 11, 2019, as part of the committee’s review of the performance and operation of Australia’s banking, insurance and superannuation regulator.

The Capability Review was commissioned by Treasurer Josh Frydenberg in response to the findings of the Hayne Royal Commission. The report of the Capability Review was released in July 2019 and the Panel made 24 recommendations, with 19 directed to APRA and five to the government.

Chair, Tim Wilson MP, said, "The Capability Review Panel identified APRA’s internal culture and regulatory approach needed improvement, and that it had to establish an additional focus on superannuation, while recognising that it was an impressive and forceful regulator in relation to traditional financial risks."

Mr Wilson said, "The hearing will allow the committee to question Professor Samuel on the panel’s assessment of APRA’s capability to deliver upon its statutory mandate and respond to an environment of growing complexity and emerging risks for APRA’s regulated sectors."

Public hearing details

Date: Wednesday, 11 September 2019
Time: 11.05am to 12.05pm
Location: Committee Room 2R1, Parliament House, Canberra

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

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THEPalaszczuk Government must immediately approve the New Acland stage 3 project, following a Court of Appeal decision in favour of New Hope, according to the Queensland Resources Council (QRC).

QRC chief executive Ian Macfarlane said there could be no more hold ups, no more delays and no more excuses.

“The New Acland Stage 3 mine should go ahead, securing the jobs of the 150 workers who are facing redundancy because of more than 10 years of delays,” Mr Macfarlane said.

“There is a precedent for the Palaszczuk Government to act. In 2007 Anna Bligh’s Government legislated to guarantee operations at Xstrata’s Wollombi project in Central Queensland in response to a court ruling."

Mr Macfarlane said that at the time, Premier Anna Bligh said: ‘My government is not prepared to have this uncertainty…Next week we will legislate to validate the mining lease so that the mine can proceed, but only with stringent environmental requirements.’

Mr Macfarlane said, "This is in sharp contrast to the Palaszczuk Government, which has refused to act to save the jobs of 150 workers at the Acland mine, where redundancy proceedings have started.

“In fact, the government doesn’t have to take that extra step to legislate, it could simply approve the mining lease and associated water licence to allow the expansion to go ahead.

“In Parliament last week the Premier said the hold up for a decision was because ‘my government is waiting on the finalisation of proceedings in the Court of Appeal’.

“The Palaszczuk Government cannot allow this emotional upheaval affecting New Hope workers and the local community to go on for one moment longer," he said.

"If the government supports coal jobs, it’s not enough just to say so. It has to back up those words with action.

“It shouldn’t matter whether those jobs are in Central Queensland or Southern Queensland. The Premier must act immediately to save New Acland coal jobs.”

Click here for link to Anna Bligh’s statement on October 12, 2007.

www.qrc.org.au

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PEOPLE receiving the Federal Government’s main unemployment and disability benefits are more likely to have multiple health conditions and to be hospitalised, according to major national study.

The report, released by Monash researchers, is the first national snapshot of the health, and the health service use, of people receiving Newstart and the disability support pension.

The study, led by Professor Alex Collie of the School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, suggests that a focus on improving the health of these people could increase their ability to find and keep work.

Researchers analysed National Health Survey data of more than 9000 people, including 638 disability pension recipients and 442 Newstart recipients.

People receiving the Centrelink benefits were more likely than workers to have many problems, and more likely to have multiple problems and diseases. They were more likely to be hospitalised, were heavy users of healthcare services, and had higher rates of medication use.

The rate of mental health conditions was much higher among people receiving the benefits, with 69 percent of disability pensioners and 49 percent of Newstart recipients reporting psychological or behavioural problems, compared with 21 percent of workers.

“It’s hard to work when you’re sick. We found large disparities between the health of people receiving Centrelink benefits and wage earners,” Prof. Collie said.

“Some of the findings are quite concerning, particularly the high rates of mental health problems experienced by benefit recipients. We also found that disability pensioners had more than double the rate of hospital admissions compared to wage earners. People on Newstart were three times more likely to report having at least 10 health conditions.

“Our study suggests that efforts to improve health in these groups should be a priority for government. Improving health can help people find and keep work.”

The CEO of the Australian Federation of Disability Organisations, Ross Joyce, said, “This study gives us new insight into the health of people with disability who receive income support through the DSP and Newstart, some of whom are the most vulnerable people in our community.”

“Over the past decade, successive governments have made it more difficult for people to apply for the DSP. We now have 200,000 people with disability who have been taken off the Disability Support Pension and placed on Newstart, many of whom have had their obligations under Newstart waived because of their disability.

“AFDO believes this traps people with disability into poverty and results in poor health outcomes.  We need to urgently address the health of these people and provide them with targeted access to health services,” Mr Joyce said.

The Monash research team is also launching a study that aims to understand the experiences of people on the DSP and their interactions with Centrelink.

“One thing we know is that bureaucratic processes can be bad for health, particularly mental health,” Prof. Collie said.

“Our new study aims to explore the links between people’s interactions with Centrelink and their health.”

People applying for the DSP, or receiving the DSP, can take part in the study by visiting www.dspstudy.com

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THE Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman, Kate Carnell said banks were wrong to discriminate against legitimate small businesses in the adult industry by blocking their access to essential financial services.

“My office is continuously contacted by sex workers who have complained they have been denied banking services such as merchant facilities to allow them to conduct their business,” Ms Carnell said.

“This is an ongoing issue and we have expressed our concerns to the Australian Banking Association and individual banks involved. There aren’t too many Australians who would rely on banks to be the moral arbiter for society.

“An EROS Association report found that financial services providers were treating adults-only businesses unfavourably on the basis of broad internal policies against the sex industry rather than tailored assessments of financial risk," Ms Carnell said.

“These actions are not only unfair, they are undermining efforts to combat the black economy. Bank accounts and financial services are essential for any legal business to operate.

“There are an estimated 25,000 people employed in the adult industry, which has an annual turnover of $2.6 billion.

“I encourage sex workers who feel they have been discriminated against by a financial service provider to contact ASBFEO for assistance.”

www.asbfeo.gov.au

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SPEAKING at the recent launch of the Business Energy Advice Program, the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman, Kate Carnell commended the introduction of free advice to help small businesses with 20 or less employees choose the best-priced energy options to suit their needs.

“These small businesses make up more than 97 percent of businesses in Australia and when it comes to energy consumption, they really feel the pain,” Ms Carnell said.

“Small businesses pay higher rates than households and use more energy, particularly manufacturers and the hospitality industry.

“They are less confident in finding the right information because what is out there is so complex, and they really don’t have the time and resources to investigate all alternatives.

“We know small business owners are experiencing high levels of stress and anxiety about energy bills, with 68% reporting these bills affect their cash flow," Ms Carnell said.

“A recent SME survey showed 70 percent would reduce investment in capital expenditure due to higher energy prices.

“The new Business Energy Advice Program offers an energy check benchmarking tool and a personalised energy advice service.

“Instead of trying to absorb energy price rises, which 85 percent of small businesses have said they would struggle to do, they will be able to shop around for a better deal.

“I encourage all small businesses to get onto the Business Energy Advice website to check their energy spend and find out how they can save money.”

www.asbfeo.gov.au

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THE FEDERAL Government's role in supporting exporters and encouraging trade and investment will be the focus of a public hearing on Friday, September 13.

The Trade and Investment Growth Committee is holding the public hearing with government agencies in Canberra as part of its Inquiry into Supporting Australia’s Exports and Attracting Investment.

Committee Chair, George Christensen MP, said, "With increasing international uncertainty regarding trade, it is vital that Australia has the right regulations in place to boost trade and investment opportunities for Australian businesses. The Committee is interested in hearing from agencies about how the government is facilitating trade and investment, particularly in new and rapidly growing areas of export."

Public hearing details

Date: Friday, 13 September 2019
Time: 9.15am to 1.15pm
Location: Committee Room 1R3, Parliament House, Canberra

Further information about the Committee’s inquiry, including the public hearing program is available on the Committee’s webpage.

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THE Queensland Resources Council (QRC) said Queenslanders would have every right to question the Palaszczuk Government’s commitment to the regions without a decision to keep 150 workers at New Hope’s Acland mine near Oakey in their jobs.

QRC chief executive Ian Macfarlane said while the Parliament would begin its regional sittings in Townsville today, a long shadow was cast over the fellow mining communities of Oakey and Toowoomba by the drawn-out saga over approvals for the New Hope Stage Three expansion.

“Today Parliament begins sitting in the state’s north.  We welcome that commitment to one of our most important resources regions. 

“But Queenslanders have every right to ask just how seriously the Palaszczuk Government takes that regional commitment as workers near Oakey are now confronting real-life redundancies because of a drawn-out approvals process that has pushed the limits of credibility,” Mr Macfarlane said.

“The future of 150 workers at the Acland mine is up in the air because of outstanding approvals for the next phase of the mine and an associated water licence. The approvals process has been running for 12 years.

“At the recent Labor Party conference, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said ‘coal, gas and renewable industries…all these jobs are good decent jobs.’

“The Premier can’t expect miners in Central and North Queensland to accept her word that this Government supports coal mining when their colleagues at Acland are left out of a job because the Government won’t make a decision on New Hope Stage Three,” Mr Macfarlane said.

“We hope to see the pro-mining rhetoric turn into a reality by ending the uncertainty for workers at the New Hope Acland mine.   The mine can be expanded while still complying with environmental sustainability requirements.

“Relocating the Parliament to the regions is an important symbolic gesture.  Backing our resources jobs from the state’s north all the way to the south is an even more important concrete action the Government can take to prove it backs regional Queensland.

“It’s time to end the decade long uncertainty for workers at the New Hope mine and support our resources sector to keep delivering for our state.”

www.qrc.org.au

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