Rail Safety National Law (South Australia) (Miscellaneous No 3) Amendment Bill

Second Reading

The Hon. P. MALINAUSKAS (Minister for Police, Minister for Correctional Services, Minister for Emergency Services, Minister for Road Safety) (16:15): I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

I am pleased to introduce the Rail Safety National Law (South Australia) (Miscellaneous No. 3) Amendment Bill 2017, which amends the Rail Safety National Law. The law is contained in a schedule to the Rail Safety National Law (South Australia) Act 2012.

In December 2009, the Council of Australian Governments agreed to implement national rail safety reform that created a single rail safety regulator to develop a rail safety national law, which a rail regulator would administer. The national rail reform aims will:

support a seamless national rail transport system;

not reduce existing levels of rail safety;

streamline regulatory arrangements and reduce the compliance burden for business; and

improve national productivity and reduce transport costs, generally.

The Rail Safety National Law commenced operation on 20 January 2013. The Office of the National Rail Safety Regulator was established as a body corporate under the law, with its scope now also enacted through legislation in all jurisdictions except Queensland, which is expected to become a participating jurisdiction on 1 July this year.

The National Transport Commission (ONRSR), together with jurisdictions, developed the law and are also responsible for identifying legislative amendments. Ministers of the Transport and Infrastructure Council are responsible for approving the law and its amendments. The amendment bill was approved by the council on 4 November 2016.

As host jurisdiction, South Australia is responsible for the passage of the law and any amendment bills through the South Australian parliament. Once commenced in South Australia, each participating jurisdiction has an application act that automatically adopts the law and subsequent amendments into its own legislation, except in Western Australia where its parliament needs to approve all amendments.

During its first three years of operation, the regulator has successfully discharged its obligations under the law, including facilitating the safe operation of rail transport in Australia by providing a scheme for national accreditation of rail transport operators and promoting the provision of national policies, procedures and guidance to industry, further progress in the consolidation of national rail safety data information, and education and training for safe railway operations.

The bill constitutes the third amendment package to be considered by parliament. The first amendment package commenced on 1 July 2015, and the second on 1 September 2016. When the ONRSR was established in 2012, the investment in major rail projects had an estimated value of $15.4 billion; however, in 2016 major rail projects announced, or having already commenced, are in excess of $60 billion and the ONRSR is not resourced to provide this level of oversight.

Consequently, this amendment package introduces powers for the regulator to charge additional fees for major rail projects, which are designed to ensure that regulatory oversight of operations can be properly maintained as the number of rail projects increases. The bill also includes a review mechanism that will allow a rail transport operator to seek a review of the regulator's decision that a project is a major project. This bill also:

specifies the Rail Industry Safety Board Limited as a prescribed authority for the purposes of sharing information to achieve national law objectives;

clarifies that a registered person may surrender a private siding from its registration without the need to surrender the entire registration or go through a variation process, as is currently the case; and

introduces a procedure for a rail transport operator to surrender an exemption granted by the regulator, separate to the regulator's powers to suspend or cancel an exemption.

Subordinate legislation will specify the additional project component fee amounts and the criteria that the regulator must consider when determining whether a project component fee is payable. The bill has the support of the ministers of the Transport and Infrastructure Council and major stakeholders, including rail industry associations. I commend this bill to members and seek leave to have the explanation of clauses inserted without my reading it.

Leave granted.

Explanation of Clauses

Part 1—Preliminary

1—Short title

2—Commencement

These clauses are formal.

3—Amendment provisions

Clause 3 provides that the amendments set out in Part 2 amend the Rail Safety Law set out in the Schedule to the Rail Safety National Law (South Australia) Act 2012.

Part 2—Amendment of Rail Safety National Law (South Australia) Act 2012

4—Amendment of section 13—Functions and objectives

One of the functions under current section 13 of the Act is to engage in, promote and coordinate the sharing of information to achieve the objects of Rail Safety National Law, including the sharing of information with a prescribed authority. This proposed amendment will include Rail Industry Safety and Standards Board (RISSB) Limited as a prescribed authority.

5—Amendment of section 64—Application for accreditation

The amendment proposed to section 64 will allow the Regulator, on receipt of an application for accreditation—

to notify the rail transport operator in writing—

that, in addition to the application fee referred to in subsection (2)(d), the Regulator is considering charging the operator the application (complex operations) fee prescribed by the national regulations; and

that the operator may, within 7 days or such longer period as is specified in the notice, make written representations to the Regulator showing cause why the application (complex operations) fee should not be charged; and

to consider any representations made under this provision and not withdrawn.

The Regulator may only send such a notice to the applicant if the Regulator is of the opinion that the scope and nature of the railway operations in respect of which accreditation is sought is such that the scale and complexity of the regulatory oversight that will be required by the Regulator in respect of the operations will be significant. If the Regulator proceeds with a decision to charge a rail transport operator the application (complex operations) fee, the Regulator must notify the operator of that fact and include in the notice—

the reasons why the Regulator is charging the fee; and

the date on or before which the fee is to be paid; and

information about the right of review under Part 7 of the Law.

6—Amendment of section 76—Annual fees

The proposed amendment to section 76 will allow the national regulations to provide that a decision of the Regulator to charge a particular fee according to a factor determined by the Regulator is a reviewable decision under Part 7 of the Law. This amendment is related to the amendment proposed to section 64.

7—Amendment of section 94—Surrender of registration

The proposed amendments to section 94 are to clarify that, where a rail infrastructure manager of a private siding is registered in respect of more than one private siding, the manager may surrender registration in respect of one or more of those private sidings without having to surrender registration in respect of all of the manager's private sidings.

8—Substitution of heading to Part 6, Division 2, Subdivision 4

The substituted heading proposed by this clause is consequential on the insertion of new section 213A by clause 9.

9—Insertion of section 213A

213A—Surrender of exemption

Currently, the Law makes provision for the cancellation or suspension of an exemption under the Law. The proposed new section will make provision for the surrender of such an exemption along similar terms as the surrender of an accreditation or a registration.

10—Amendment of section 215—Reviewable decisions

The proposed amendments to section 215 are consequential on the amendments to the Law proposed by clauses 5, 6 and 9.

Debate adjourned on motion of Hon. G.E. Gago.