23 September 2009
DAFF09/325B

The Rudd Government continues to make progress on reforming Australia’s biosecurity system, following the detailed recommendations of the Beale Review.

Work is set to begin on planning for a comprehensive biosecurity IT upgrade to replace outdated systems, most of which are more than a decade old.

The technology is increasingly unreliable and involves 75 different systems which need to be streamlined to reduce the potential impact on trade if systems fail.

The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry has advised that a failure in the current inefficient clearance system would halt quarantine processing of trade within days.

The Government will also examine the current network of quarantine facilities for plants and animals entering Australia, to better plan for future needs.

Leases for the current five sites expire in 2015 and a number can’t be renewed, meaning work must begin now to look at alternatives and ensure we maintain a rigorous biosecurity system.

The measures are another step forward in the long process of responding to the findings of the Beale Review, in consultation with other states and industry.

Detailed drafting of new legislation to replace the century-old Quarantine Act is continuing.

And interim arrangements which took effect on 1 July this year, in-line with the recommendations of the Beale Review, remain in place, including:

• Dr Kevin Dunn appointed as interim Inspector General of Biosecurity;
• the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry’s biosecurity functions consolidated into a new one-stop-shop, integrating AQIS, Biosecurity Australia and other areas in a Biosecurity Services Group; and
• former ABARE Chief Economist Mr Roger Rose has joined the Eminent Scientists Group which is responsible for reviewing the import risk analyses conducted by Biosecurity Australia.

A Biosecurity Advisory Council is expected to be established later this year as the key source of independent biosecurity advice to the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.

Consistent with the Beale report, the Government has also moved from the previous system of Increased Quarantine Intervention, with inflexible targets, to a genuine risk management system and has maintained the National Sentinel Hive Program.

On-going work on the planned IT upgrade, the network of quarantine facilities, legislation drafting and maintaining interim arrangements will be supported with $14.7 million from within the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry budget.

The Beale Review report made 84 recommendations, which the Government accepted in-principle.

It followed the Callinan Inquiry into the 2007 outbreak of equine influenza. The Government is on-track or ahead of schedule on implementing the 38 Callinan Report recommendations.