During May’s Parliamentary Sittings the Albanese Government’s Bill on Australian Government Digital ID Systems was steamrolled through Parliament.
When the Bills were first introduced in the Senate, the Government voted down efforts by the Opposition to extend the Economic Committee’s inquiry into the Bill by around a month. The truncated inquiry has been criticised by stakeholders.
On 27 March the Government’s digital identity legislation passed the Senate. The Coalition voted to oppose this legislation. The Bills were then presented to the House of Representatives and were voted on 16 May.
The Coalition voted against Bills, but they passed with the support of Labor, The Greens, and the Teal Independents.
It is deeply concerning that these Bills went to the House without the benefit of a second reading debate due to the Government’s guillotine in the Senate.
The Opposition and other Senators were unable to scrutinise the Bills clause by clause and were denied the opportunity to speak on proposed amendments.
Unfortunately, Labor’s new Digital ID legislation risks Government overreach and locking people out of systems who don’t have the technology required. The legislation also fails to interface with the Privacy Act which will now need to be reformed, along with other legislation that has regimes for identity verification and digital transactions.
It is not good enough for Bills which are fundamental to our most basic of human rights to be steamrolled through the Parliament in this fashion.
Another piece of legislation that was rammed through Parliament with stifled debate and without proper scrutiny is the poorly designed new Vehicle Efficiency Standard, referred to as the Family Car and Ute Tax.
This Bill will add thousands of collars to the cost of buying popular family SUVs and 4WDs and make it even harder for tradies and small businesses by significantly increasing the price of a new work ute or van.
The new Vehicle Efficiency Standard will have an impact on millions of Australians – and it deserved to be properly debated and fully considered before we voted on it. But the Government trashed parliamentary scrutiny to ram through this controversial tax.
National Volunteers Week is held annually in May to recognise and thank volunteers for the vital role they play in Australian communities.
Wide Bay has many local volunteer heroes who deserve recognition, and I’m inviting community organisations to apply for certificates of appreciation for their volunteers as a small way of saying thank you and expressing our appreciation for their efforts.
You can nominate your local heroes via the application form at llewobrien.com.au/nominate-a-volunteer/
Certificates will be sent to community groups for presentation to the recipients. Please note that nominees must reside in the Wide Bay electorate.
Currently community groups, just like many families and businesses, are struggling to cover their rapidly rising costs. Not-for-profit groups that rely on volunteers are finding it particularly hard to attract and keep the volunteers they need to meet the community demand for their services.
I recently announced that several regional not-for-profit groups will receive a grant from the Australia Government’s 2023-24 Volunteer Grant Program to help support their volunteers.
The Volunteer Grant Program provides funding of up to $5000 to eligible organisations to help purchase equipment, conduct training activities, or reimburse fuel costs for volunteers.
The local organisations to receive a Volunteer Grant in 2023-24 include the Noosa Shire Museum, Noosa District Basketball Association, and Pomona District Meals on Wheels.
The grants will help these organisations to support their volunteers and the vital work they do in their communities.
