PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS BILL

In reply to the Hon. R.D. LAWSON (19 September 2006).

The Hon. P. HOLLOWAY (Minister for Police, Minister for Mineral Resources Development, Minister for Urban Development and Planning): The Attorney-General has provided the following information:

I am pleased to advise the Hon. R.D. Lawson that the South Australian Act commenced on 1 October, 2006, 12 days after he asked the question. Mr Terry Evans, an experienced corporate lawyer and former Deputy and Acting Chief Executive of the Attorney-General's Department, has been appointed as the South Australian member of the State and Territories' Professional Standards Councils. The full South Australian Council, comprising Mr Evans and those members nominated by the other jurisdictions, has been appointed.

As to the development of schemes, it was open to occupational associations to begin preparing schemes for lodgement with the Council before 1 October, although, of course, no formal application could be made until the Act commenced. The Government is advised by the Professional Standards Council that the Institute of Chartered Accountants Australia has already submitted a scheme for approval and Engineers Australia is preparing a scheme to be submitted.

Once a scheme has been submitted to the Council for approval, there are steps that need to be taken before it can be approved and commence. The Council must conduct a minimum 28-day public consultation. It may hold a public hearing into the Scheme. Before approving a Scheme, the Council must consider any comments received as a result of the public consultation. Once approved, the Council must submit the Scheme to the Minister for publication in the Gazette.

These steps will, inevitably, take time. As to the delay in commencing the South Australian Act, matters had to be attended to before the Act could be brought into operation. These matters included the negotiation of an inter-governmental agreement, the appointment of the South Australian Council and the development of the necessary regulations. The Act is, as I have said, now in operation.

Honourable members may be interested to know that amendments to the Act, to address a concern about whether cost-inclusive insurance policies can satisfy the insurance requirements, have been included in the Statutes Amendment (Justice Portfolio) Bill 2006, which has now passed Parliament and was assented to on 14 December.