Urgency

I move, That urgency be accorded the introduction and passing through all stages of the Taxation (Cost of Living Payments) Bill and the Income Insurance Scheme (Enabling Development) Bill; the introduction, first reading, and referral to select committee of the Commerce (Grocery Sector Covenants) Amendment Bill; and the introduction and passing through all stages of the Companies Office Registers Funding Validation Bill, the Customs and Excise (Tobacco Products) Amendment Bill, and the Coroners (Coronial Cap) Amendment Bill.

Very briefly to summarise the reasons for urgency for these pieces of legislation, there are six bills—five to go through all stages and one to have a first reading. The Taxation (Cost of Living Payments) Bill establishes the Cost of Living Payment scheme that was announced in the Budget today, and the scheme comes into effect on 1 August—hence the need for urgency.

The Income Insurance Scheme (Enabling Development) Bill enables ACC to prepare the Income Insurance Scheme. It does not initiate the scheme; that will be subject to further legislation.

The Companies Office Registers Funding Validation Bill deals with the way the Companies Office funds its corporate registry functions, and deals with an urgent issue there around the validation of the use of funding, which other parties have been informed, and consulted on, about.

The Commerce (Grocery Sector Covenants) Amendment Bill, again, deals with an issue announced in the Budget today, which is the Government’s desire to ensure that competition in the grocery sector is not blocked through the use of grocery sector covenants. That bill will have a short select committee process.

The Customs and Excise (Tobacco Products) Amendment Bill deals with a particularly narrow form of tax evasion around water-pipe tobacco.

And the Coroners (Coronial Cap) Amendment Bill is a small bill that just increases the number of coroners, which is a Budget measure. We want to have the coroners in place as soon as possible, given the level of demand there is for coronial services.