Transport ministers agree to bring forward the introduction National Heavy Vehicle, Maritime and Rail Safety Regulators by six months
By <a href="mailto:agamelopata@acpmagazines.com.au”>Anna Game-Lopata and Brad Gardner |
May 23, 2011
Transport ministers have agreed to bring forward the introduction National Heavy Vehicle, Maritime and Rail Safety Regulators by six months in line with a push from industry.
Meeting last week, the Australian Transport Council voted in favour of an intergovernmental agreement to establish the regulators in mid 2012 instead of the planned January 2013 date.
Prior to the meeting, Australian Logistics Council (ALC) CEO Michael Kilgariff wrote to Transport Minister Anthony Albanese expressing concern about the possible failure to implement national regulations with “teeth” for the transport and logistics industry.
“For the intended economic benefits to be fully realised, the national laws should be administered by a single National Heavy Vehicle Regulator which has broad powers and full responsibility for the operation of the national laws,”
Kilgariff wrote.
“It is essential therefore that the Heavy Vehicle National Law be an applied law where all states and territories apply the Law that will be passed in Queensland. That is the only way a national law can work efficiently and effectively.”
Kilagriff says Friday’s outcome was a good one, with signatures collected for the establishment of national regulators for the trucking, maritime and rail safety sectors by 2012.
Buoyed by this success, Kilgariff also softened his line on Western Australia’s decision to divorce itself from national fatigue and productivity laws.
Having expressed disappointment last week, Kilgariff now says there is scope for Western Australia to take an individual position within the national framework.
“We think if they want to address fatigue issues and productivity variations they can do that,” he says.
“There’s no need to step out of the national approach to achieve those outcomes.”
The
legislation has now been sent to the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) for approval when it meets later this year.
While not specifying details, the communiqué from the meeting indicates a lot of work still needs to be done before governments agree on one set of regulations for transport operators.
“Ministers identified a number of key areas of further work in settling the proposed rail safety and heavy vehicle regulatory requirements which will need to be worked through over the next six months as the national laws are finalised,” the communiqué says.
In his letter to Albanese, Kilgariff also emphasised the need for a proposed National Heavy Vehicle Regulator
to receive an appropriate level of funding.
“Providing the national regulator with insufficient funding will put at risk this historic national reform and negate the significant economic efficiencies it is intended to achieve,” Kilgariff wrote.
“Until we see the final legislation its hard to know if anything will change but you’d have to say Friday’s ATC meeting had a pretty good outcome,”
Kilgariff said today.
“We expect to see the final legislation once more before it goes.
“The Maritime and Rail Safety draft legislation is expected to be out in July and we’ll definitely have comments to make about that.”