Australian Parliament News

AUKUS defense ministers have reaffirmed their resolve to bolster security and stability and ensure that the Indo-Pacific remains a region free from coercion and aggression.A statement was released after Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III hosted Richard Marles MP, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence, Australia, and Grant Shapps, Secretary of State for Defence, United Kingdom, at the Defense Innovation Unit Headquarters in California on December 1.AUKUS is a trilateral security partnership for the Indo-Pacific region between Australia…

The RSPCA has welcomed the tabling of the Australian federal Minister for Agriculture's response to one of the largest Australian parliamentary e-petitions in history, calling for an end to live sheep export.Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Murray Watt, stated: “The Australian Government acknowledges the considerable community concerns about animal welfare in the trade of live sheep exports by sea and understands the desire to see action.“The government took the commitment to phase out live sheep exports by sea to two elections…

Akastor's subsidiary DDW Offshore has won a one-year contract with Petrofac for the AHTS vessel Skandi Atlantic. The AHTS will support the disconnection of the FPSO "Northern Endeavour" together with towing and well isolations work in the Laminaria Corallina oil fields in the West Timor Sea. The contract start date is September 27th, 2022.The Australian Government earlier this year awarded London-listed oilfield services giant Petrofac a contract for Phase 1 of the decommissioning of the Northern Endeavour FPSO, offshore W.

Vietnam and Australia called on Wednesday for "self-restraint" in the South China Sea and warned against the unilateral use of force, an obvious reference to China's increasingly aggressive presence that has stirred concerns across the disputed region. Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung met Australian counterpart Tony Abbott in Canberra, where they will sign a deal on issues including security and climate change. Vietnam and other wary Southeast Asian countries have complained about China's controversial policy of land reclamation on disputed isles in the South China Sea. Beijing in turn has said it is not seeking to overturn international order. Dung told the Australian parliament there was an imperative need to draw up a code of conduct for the South China Sea. "We agreed ...

The South Australian Liberal Party risks damaging investor and public confidence in the natural gas industry by moving to establish a Parliamentary inquiry into hydraulic fracturing – an industry practice that has been used safely in the State for many decades. APPEA’s Chief Operating Officer Western Region, Stedman Ellis, said the inquiry proposed by the Member for Mt Gambier had little basis in science. Mr Ellis said the South Australian Parliament needed to be wary that it did not provide a megaphone for people who want to undermine the industry and the investment and jobs it provided. “South Australia has consistently been ranked in international surveys as the most attractive Australian state for oil and gas investment,” Mr Ellis said.

All maritime unions – the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA), The Australian Maritime Officers Union (AMOU) and Australian Institute of Marine and Power Engineers (AIMPE) – opposed the Abbott Government’s attempts to flood the offshore oil and gas sector with cheap foreign labour, says the Maritime Union of Australia. They consider that the Australian Parliament has made the right decision in disallowing this proposal. The Senate  voted to disallow the Federal Government from continuing to issue Maritime Crew (subclass 988) visas to foreign workers for the purposes of working in Australia’s offshore oil and gas industry. A petition calling…

Australian Parliament's new maritime legislation will revamp Australian maritime regulatory responsibilites in 2013. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) will become the national regulator for all domestic commercial vessels in Australia, with state and Northern Territory maritime agencies exercising AMSA delegations in administering national standards. The new Navigation Act 2012 will modernise the way international shipping is regulated by AMSA, providing for high levels of safety and protection of the marine environment through transparent and flexible regulation. The Regulatory Affairs and Reform Division will become the Domestic Vessel Division.

ITF president and Maritime Union of Australia national secretary Paddy Crumlin today welcomed the passing of bills that secure the future of Australian shipping. The Australian government's landmark Shipping Reform Package bills today passed the Australian Parliament's House of Representatives with a narrow vote of 71 - 69. All of the speakers in favor made mention of the hard work of the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) - its national secretary Paddy Crumlin and all the members involved. The bills represent over 10 years of work by the MUA, especially Mr Crumlin, and follows the endorsed support from members at the recent Seafarers’ Conference and National MUA Conference.

The Maritime Transport Security Bill has been introduced in the Australian Parliament. When introducing the bill, John Anderson, Minister for Transport and Regional Services, discussed (on pages 19637-19639 of the Hansard) the threat posed by terrorism and the importance of seaborne trade. As proposed, the bill would establish a regulatory framework centered around development of security plans for ships and other maritime transport operations. It would, among other things, codify the ISPS Code into domestic law. Source: HK Law