Evans, Sen Christopher

Senator Chris Evans: The Prime Minister has provided the following answer to the honourable senator's question: (1) The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (PM&C) has sought community views (particularly those of environment NGOs), in relation to the Business Advisory Forum (BAF) proposal for approval of bilateral agreements under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth) (EPBC Act). There will be further opportunities for public input as the reform progresses. The details of meetings to date are set out below. 4 July 2012: PM&C representatives attended two 1.5 hour forums hosted by the Department of Finance and Deregulation to seek stakeholder feedback on COAG's competition and regulatory reform agenda, including environment regulation reform, as agreed in April 2012. One forum was held for environment NGOs and the other for industry. Invitees that attended included representatives from Commonwealth, state and territory governments, business and environment NGOs. 6 July 2012: meeting with representatives from the NSW Environmental Defenders Office to discuss the environment regulation reform proposal. 1 August 2012: meeting with representatives from the Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) to discuss the environment regulation reform proposal. 2 November 2012: 1 hour stakeholder briefing on the Commonwealth's draft Framework of Standards for Accreditation (the draft standards), which were publicly released on the same day. Out of approximately 30 invitees, representatives from the following organisations attended: Australian Conservation Foundation, Australian Council of National Trusts, Australian Industry Groups, Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association, BirdLife Australia, Business Council of Australia, Commonwealth Fisheries Association, Environment Institute of Australia and New Zealand, Greenpeace Australia Pacific, Humane Society International, Institute of Foresters of Australia, Minerals Council of Australia, National Environmental Law Association, National Farmers' Federation, National Network of Environmental Defenders Offices (NSW), National Working Group of NRM Regional Bodies, Nature Conservation Council of NSW, Property Council of Australia, Urban Development Institute of Australia, Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists. 12 November: 1 hour stakeholder briefing on the draft standards. Out of approximately 110 invitees, representatives from the following organisations attended: Australian Coal Association Limited, Australian Network of Environmental Defender's Offices, Business Council of Australia, Commonwealth Fisheries Association, CSIRO, Environmental Decisions Group, Federation of Australian Historical Societies, National Parks Australia Council, Nature Conservation Council of NSW, Urban Development Institute of Australia, WWF. Stakeholder feedback at these meetings has been consistent. Environment groups maintain their opposition to the reform, while business groups are generally supportive. To date public feedback on the draft standards has been minimal. (2) PM&C met with the Business Council of Australia, the Australian Industry Group and the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry to prepare for the Business Advisory Forum on 12 April 2012. The meetings were convened to discuss business priorities for discussion at the BAF, which in turn informed the April 2012 BAF agenda. (3) The following are independent reports that address inefficiencies and duplication in Australia's environmental regulatory framework: Hawke, A. (2009), Independent Review of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999, Final Report, Canberra. http://www.environment.gov.au/epbc/review/publications/final-report.html (Independent review of the EPBC Act) Australian Government Productivity Commission (2007), Annual Review of Regulatory Burdens on Business: Primary Sector, Research Report, Canberra. http://www.pc.gov.au/projects/study/regulatoryburdens/primarysector/?a=74115 Australian Government Productivity Commission (2009), Review of Regulatory Burden on the Upstream Petroleum (Oil and Gas) Sector, Research Report, Melbourne. http://www.pc.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0011/87923/upstream-petroleum.pdf Australian Government Productivity Commission (2011), Performance Benchmarking of Australian Business Regulation: Planning, Zoning and Development Assessment, Research Report, Canberra. http://www.pc.gov.au/projects/study/regulation-benchmarking/planning/report Australian Government Productivity Commission (2012), COAG's regulatory and Competition Reform Agenda: A High Level Assessment of the Gains, Research Report, Canberra. http://www.pc.gov.au/research/commission/regulatory-competition-reform Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities (2011). Cost Benefit Analysis – Reforms to Environmental Impact Assessments under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999, Final Report, Canberra. http://ris.finance.gov.au/files/2011/09/EPBC-Act-Environmental-Impact-Assessment-CBA.pdf (4) No. (5) Yes. See the Independent review of the EPBC Act.