Explanatory Memorandum
(Circulated by authority of the Minister for Urban Infrastructure and Cities the Hon Paul Fletcher MP)Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights
Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011
Road Vehicle Standards (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2018
This Bill is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.
Overview of the Bill
This Bill provides for the transition between the Motor Vehicle Standards Act 1989 and the new Road Vehicle Standards Bill 2018. The Bill also provides consequential amendments to other Commonwealth legislation to refer to the new Road Vehicle Standards Bill 2018. These amendments maintain the existing regulatory framework. The amendments to other Commonwealth laws are consequential to the enactment of the Road Vehicle Standards Bill.
This Bill has limited impact on human rights and is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.
For the human rights implications of the new legislation, the explanatory memorandum for the Road Vehicle Standards Bill 2018 should be referred to.
Human rights implications
Right of privacy and reputation (monitoring and investigation powers)
Article 17 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) prohibits unlawful or arbitrary interferences with a person's privacy, family, home and correspondence. It also prohibits unlawful attacks on a person's reputation. It provides that persons have the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks. This right may be subject to permissible limitations where those limitations are provided by law and are non-arbitrary. The limitations must seek to achieve a legitimate objective and be reasonable, necessary and proportionate to this purpose.
The monitoring and investigation power in this Bill, drawn from the Regulatory Powers Act, provide for powers to enter premises. These powers include the ability to search the premises, inspect documents or things on the premises, ask questions and take extracts or copies of documents. These powers are necessary for the legitimate objective of protecting the right to life and the right to health (core rights protected by the current Motor Vehicle Standards Act 1989 and the new Road Vehicle Standards Bill 2018) by ensuring that relevant information required to assess compliance with the Bill is accessible and available to Vehicle Safety Standards Inspectors when required.
Vehicle Safety Standards Inspectors need access to this information in order to properly assess the level of safety risk associated with the vehicles and then to be able to manage any vehicle risks appropriately. Without these powers, Vehicle Safety Standards Inspectors would not have sufficient information to effectively assess or manage vehicle safety risks. However, these clauses may operate to limit the right to privacy as they enable entry to premises, searching of premises and the copying and sampling of information.
A number of protections are in place to ensure that any interference with the right to privacy is lawful and to protect this right including obligations on Vehicle Safety Standards Inspectors. These powers can only be exercised in particular circumstances and the powers reflect the harm that may be caused by non-compliance with vehicle safety standards. Entry to premises is only allowed with consent or a warrant. For entry under consent, this includes a requirement that the consent of the occupier is given voluntarily. A warrant to enter premises may only be granted if there are reasonable grounds for investigating or monitoring. Vehicle Safety Standards Inspectors entering premises under a warrant must provide an announcement before entry, give details of the warrant to the occupier and provide identification to the occupier. These threshold tests are designed to ensure that any interference with the right to privacy is lawful and is only to ensure compliance with the Act for the purpose of managing vehicle safety and environmental risks.
Right of privacy and reputation (increasing protections)
The prohibition on interference with privacy and attacks on reputation prohibits unlawful or arbitrary interferences with a person's privacy, family, home and correspondence. It also prohibits unlawful attacks on a person's reputation. It provides that persons have the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks. The Bill promotes the right of privacy and reputation by requiring Vehicle Safety Standard Inspectors to either obtain a warrant or consent to take and retain samples of any goods or substance used in the manufacture or testing of a road vehicle or a road vehicle component.
Right of protection from discrimination (age)
Schedule 4 of this Bill makes consequential amendments to the Age Discrimination Act 2004. The Age Discrimination Act 2004 prohibits discrimination on the basis of age in key areas of public life, including employment. Section 39(1) of the Age Discrimination Act 2004 does not apply to the Motor Vehicle Standards Regulations 1989. The Rules made under the Road Vehicle Standards Bill are expected to continue to apply the eligibility criteria that people must be 18 years of age or older to apply for and hold a Registered Automotive Workshop approval. This continues the Government's existing policy on the age of holders of Registered Automotive Workshop approvals. This does not prevent people under the age of 18 from working for or in registered workshops, just limits the age of the approval holder. This is necessary for ensuring that the significant responsibilities of Registered Automotive Workshops are held by appropriately qualified and legally responsible persons, continuing to promote rights to life and rights to health of the community.
Conclusion
The Bill is compatible with human rights because it promotes the protection of human rights and to the extent that it may limit human rights, those limitations are reasonable, necessary and proportionate.