New Bills Introduced To Merge Customs and Immigration Into New Mega-Department
Thursday 26 February 2015 @ 11.38 a.m. | Crime | Immigration
Yesterday, the Federal Government introduced the Australian Border Force Bill 2015 and the Customs and Other Legislation Amendment (Australian Border Force) Bill 2015. The Bills set out the legislative changes to implement the merging of the Customs and Immigrations Department into one mega department, to be known as the “Australian Border Force”. The change has been on the cards for some time, having been originally announced in May 2014 by then Immigration Minister Scott Morrison. He told ABC News last year that the merger would result in “hundreds of millions [of dollars] in savings”, and would “put Australia’s national security interests first”.
In one of his first speeches as the incoming Minister, Peter Dutton told the Sydney Morning Herald in December he was committed to the merger, saying his goal was to build:
“a system where criminals are faced with the hardest borders possible, but legitimate traders and travellers are unimpeded by border processes”.
However, the Sydney Morning Herald reported that “tensions within the department are rising before the two departments merge” and said that “[m]ore than five senior immigration staff recently left the department”.
The Bills are scheduled to commence on 1 July 2015 and are currently in the House of Representatives.
Australian Border Force Bill 2015
This Bill will establish the Australian Border Force (ABF), which according to the Explanatory Memorandum:
“will be a single, integrated, frontline operational border entity within the Department that is charged with enforcing customs and immigration laws and protecting Australia’s borders.”
This Bill also institutes the role of the Australian Border Force Commissioner, who will have a dual role as Comptroller-General of Customs. The Commissioner will be directly accountable to the Minister for Immigration and Border Protection, and is to be appointed by the Governor-General for a period not exceeding five years.
Immigration and Border Protection workers will also need to submit to alcohol and drug tests, and will be subject to certain secrecy and disclosure provisions.
Customs and Other Legislation Amendment (Australian Border Force) Bill 2015
This Bill repeals the Customs Administration Act 1985 (Cth) in order to effect the merger and abolish the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service (ACBPS) as a standalone authority. It also amends a number of other acts relating to customs or the ACBPS as a consequence of this repeal.
The Bill confers on the Commissioner/Comptroller-General of Customs the powers and functions currently conferred on the Chief Executive Officer of Customs.
The Commissioner will also have the power to declare that particular provisions of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Cth) do not apply to work carried out by Immigration and Border Protection workers. The Explanatory Memorandum says this is necessary as:
“IBP workers in the ABF will be engaged in a number of unique and high risk environments that are necessary for Australia‘s national security and defence. It is critical these workers can be confident they are able to perform the tasks required of them professionally and diligently in what can be demanding environments… the Bill extends the assurance currently provided to Australia‘s National Security agencies and Defence Force to the ABF and its workers, to explicitly enable them to address the unique issues that arise in relation to Australia‘s border protection.”
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Sources:
Australian Border Force Bill 2015 (Cth) & Explanatory Memorandum; Customs and Other Legislation Amendment (Australian Border Force) Bill 2015 (Cth) & Explanatory Memorandum - available from TimeBase's LawOne Service
