Primary Industries Legislation Amendment Bill 2017

Introduction Print

EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

Clause Notes

Part 1—Preliminary

Clause 1 is the purpose section. It provides that the purposes of the Bill are—

(a) to amend the Catchment and Land Protection Act 1994, the Dairy Act 2000, the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981, the Fisheries Act 1995, the Game Management Authority Act 2014, the Livestock Disease Control Act 1994, the Meat Industry Act 1993, the Melbourne Market Authority Act 1977, the Plant Biosecurity Act 2010, the Veterinary Practice Act 1997, and the Wildlife Act 1975 to make changes that improve the administration and management of the relevant Acts, to remove operational difficulties, and to make other minor and technical changes; and

(b) to make miscellaneous and consequential amendments to the Confiscation Act 1997, the Conservation, Forests, and Lands Act 1987, the Crown Land (Reserves) Act 1978, the Firearms Act 1996 and the Land Act 1958; and

(c) to repeal the Broiler Chicken Industry Act 1978 and the Broiler Chicken Industry (Amendment) Act 1991, which are now redundant; and

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(d) to repeal the Livestock Disease Control Amendment Act 2007, as sections 6 to 8 of that Act have been overtaken by subsequent amendments to the Livestock Disease Control Act 1994 and are no longer required so the 2007 Act is now redundant.

Clause 2 is the commencement section. It provides for most of the Bill to come into operation on a date or dates to be proclaimed, for section 11(1) which substitutes a new definition of commercial quantities in the Fisheries Act 1995 to come into operation on 1 July 2019, and for any other provision of the Bill that is not in force by 1 January 2019 to come into operation on that date.

Part 2—Amendment of the Catchment and Land Protection Act 1994

Clause 3 amends section 79 of the Catchment and Land Protection Act 1994. Section 79(1) and (2) allow the Secretary body corporate established under Part 2 of the Conservation, Forests, and Lands Act 1987 to carry out any work that the Secretary believes is necessary where a land management notice or land use condition has not been complied with. Section 79(5) allows the Secretary to recover the costs of that work as a civil debt. Clause 3 amends section 79(5) for clarity and inserts a new section 79(7) that provides that where the Secretary recovers any of the costs through an order under new section 79AA, the debt is reduced by amount already recovered.

Clause 4 inserts a new section 79AA in the Catchment and Land Protection Act 1994 to allow the Secretary to recover the costs of carrying out work under section 79(1) or (2) during the sentencing stage of criminal proceedings from a person who is convicted of an offence under section 35(1) or 41(1) for failing to carry out the same work.

Part 3—Amendment of the Dairy Act 2000

Clause 5 amends section 3 of the Dairy Act 2000 (the Dairy Act). The Dairy Act establishes Dairy Food Safety Victoria as the industry licensor and regulator. The Dairy Act only applies to dairy milk from cows, sheep, goat, and buffalo. Clause 5 amends the definitions of dairy farm and milk to allow the Dairy Act to apply to the milk of any milking animal (which does not include human milk).

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Clause 6 amends section 17 of the Dairy Act to allow Dairy Food Safety Victoria to delegate its powers to a class of persons or to persons in particular positions (in addition to named individuals).

Part 4—Amendment of the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981

Part 4A of the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981 concerns authorisations, and applications for authorisations, to cultivate, possess, process, sell, or supply industrial hemp (or low-THC cannabis) for commercial or research purposes.

Clause 7 amends section 61 in Part 4A of the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981 to substitute a new definition of serious offence, which make a person ineligible to hold an authorisation, to include indictable offences involving assault and serious offences committed in other states and territories.

Clause 8 inserts a new section 69AB into Part 4A of the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981 to allow the Secretary to delegate any of the Secretary's powers under Part 4A to appropriate departmental officials.

Clause 9 inserts a new section 147 into the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981 to provide that any application received under Part 4A before the definition of serious offence is substituted by clause 7 above is to be unaffected by the substitution.

Part 5—Amendment of the Fisheries Act 1995

Clause 10 repeals section 3A(2)(h) of the Fisheries Act 1995 (the Fisheries Act), which relates to the Licensing Appeals Tribunal, to reflect the abolition of that body by clause 31 below.

Clause 11 amends section 4(1) of the Fisheries Act to substitute a new definition of commercial quantity to allow commercial quantities of priority species to be prescribed in regulations or in fisheries notices and to repeal the definition of Licensing Appeals Tribunal to reflect the abolition of that body by clause 31 below and to insert definitions of maximum size and minimum size (the minimum and maximum sizes for fish are prescribed in regulations or in fisheries notices).

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Clause 12 amends section 28(7) of the Fisheries Act to allow management plans to include, where applicable, fish harvest strategies that set out actions to be carried out if fish stocks reach certain levels.

Clause 13 amends section 49 of the Fisheries Act to delete redundant words in light of the insertion of the definitions of maximum size and minimum size by clause 11 above and to provide that, where a general permit is cancelled under that Act because the holder has ceased to be a fit and proper person to hold a permit, the Victorian Fisheries Authority can specify a period of up to 7 years within which that person is not allowed to reapply for a fishery licence or permit under the Fisheries Act.

Clause 14 amends section 53 of the Fisheries Act, which contains an offence for failing to comply with the conditions of a licence or permit. Section 53(3) contains a defence for a licence holder who can show that (a) they contracted with another person to ensure compliance, (b) they did everything practicable to ensure compliance and (c) they did not aid, abet, counsel, or procure the crime. Clause 14 amends section 53(c) to replace the references to aiding, abetting, counselling, or procuring with references to assisting, encouraging, or directing in line with recent changes made to Division 1 of Part 2 of the Crimes Act 1958.

Clause 15 amends section 58 of the Fisheries Act to provide that, where a fisheries licence is cancelled because the holder has ceased to be a fit and proper person to hold the licence, the Victorian Fisheries Authority can specify a period of up to 7 years within which that person is not allowed to reapply for a fishery licence or permit under the Fisheries Act.

Clause 16 substitutes a new section 65A(3) of the Fisheries Act to remove the requirement for a licence holder to return an existing quota notice when applying for the transfer of quota units to another person. This reflects the fact that quota notices are no longer needed as evidence of individual quota because the Authority keeps records of quota allocations electronically.

Clause 17 amends section 68A of the Fisheries Act, which contain offences for non-compliance with prescribed size and catch limits. Clause 17 amends section 68A(1), (2), (4B), and (5) to replace the different maximum penalties for first and subsequent offences with a single maximum penalty of 100 penalty units or 6 months imprisonment or both, amends section 68A(1), (2), (3),

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(5) and (7) to delete redundant words in light of the insertion of the definitions of maximum size and minimum size by clause 11 above, and repeals section 68A(4C) which contains a defence because there is a non-application provision in section 68A(9).

Clause 18 amends section 68B(1) of the Fisheries Act, which contains an offence for exceeding the catch limit for abalone, to replace the different maximum penalties for first and subsequent offences with a single maximum penalty of 100 penalty units or 6 months imprisonment or both.

Clause 19 amends section 76 of the Fisheries Act, which contains offences related to prohibited noxious aquatic substances, to replace the different maximum penalties for first and subsequent offences with a single maximum penalty of 200 penalty units.

Clause 20 amends section 82 of the Fisheries Act to provide that, where a noxious aquatic species permit is revoked because the holder has ceased to be a fit and proper person to hold the permit, the Victorian Fisheries Authority can specify a period of up to 7 years within which that person is not allowed to reapply for a fishery licence or permit under the Fisheries Act.

Clause 21 amends section 89 of the Fisheries Act to make provision for requirements related to fisheries reserves to be prescribed in regulations or fisheries notices, in addition to Orders in Council.

Clause 22 amends section 98 of the Fisheries Act, which provides that certain offences under the Crimes Act 1958 are associated offences and allows authorised officers and police to enforce those offences when carrying out fisheries-related investigations. Clause 22 amends section 98 to provide—

for certain offences under the Bail Act 1977 to be associated offences under the Fisheries Act;

for the offence of escaping lawful custody under the Summary Offences Act 1966 to be an associated offence;

for certain offences under the Control of Weapons Act 1990 that are detected in the course of performing a function or exercising a power under the Fisheries Act to be associated offences;

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for offences under the Crimes Act 1958 of assaulting or threatening an authorised officer or a police officer, obtaining financial advantage by deception while doing an act in contravention of the Fisheries Act, false accounting in relation to an account, record, or document that is required to be made, kept, or produced under the Fisheries Act, falsification of a document that is required under or produced for the purpose of the Fisheries Act, destruction of evidence to be used in proceedings under the Fisheries Act to be associated offences.

Clause 23 amends section 102(6D) of the Fisheries Act, to allow an authorised officer or a police officer exercising a power of entry to be able to require a person to produce, for inspection, any fish or fishing equipment that is in that person's possession.

Clause 24 amends section 103 of the Fisheries Act, which relates to search warrants to search land or premises, for greater consistency with the Magistrates' Courts Act 1989.

Clause 25 amends section 106 of the Fisheries Act, which relates to items seized or retained, to amend subsection (5A) to provide that the offence of hiding and concealing fish in new section 116(2A) inserted by clause 27 below is an offence for which a Court may order the forfeiture of any seized items if the offence is proved. Clause 25 also inserts new subsection (6B) to clarify that if possession or use of a thing is prohibited under an Act other than the Fisheries Act, it must not be returned to the person from whom it was seized or the owner and must be dealt with as provided for under the other Act.

Clause 26 amends section 111 of the Fisheries Act, which relates to offences in relation to authorised officers, to make minor changes to reflect the requirement in new section 102(6D) being inserted by clause 23 above to produce fish and fishing equipment, on demand, to an authorised officer.

Clause 27 inserts new section 116(2A) of the Fisheries Act to create a new offence of hiding or concealing fish that has been taken or otherwise dealt with in contravention of the Fisheries Act or a corresponding Commonwealth law or law of another State or Territory. The new offence may, on the facts, have overlapping elements with the offence in section 116(1). The Bill does not

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alter the existing protections in the common law and statute that prohibit a person who is charged and convicted from being sentenced twice for the same conduct. Clause 27 also amends the definition of otherwise dealt with in section 116(3) to ensure that the words also carry their natural meaning.

Clause 28 amends section 120(4) of the Fisheries Act, which makes a corporation liable if a nominated person commits an offence under that Act. Section 120 contains a defence if the corporation can show that it did everything practicable to ensure the offence was not committed and it did not aid, abet, counsel, or procure the offence. Clause 28 amends section 120(4)(b) to replace the references to aiding, abetting, counselling, or procuring with references to assisting, encouraging, or directing in line with recent changes made to Division 2 of Part 2 of the Crimes Act 1958.

Clause 29 amends section 130 of the Fisheries Act, which allows a Court in sentencing a person for a serious fisheries offence to make an order prohibiting the person from engaging in certain fisheries activities. Clause 29 also inserts a new section 130(1)(f) to allow the Court to issue a prohibition order to prevent a person selling, supplying, processing, receiving or otherwise dealing with fish, protected aquatic biota, or noxious aquatic species and amends section 130(2)(b) to clarify the grounds for making an order.

Clause 30 substitutes section 131O(1) of the Fisheries Act, which provides a defence for a person who aids, abets, or conspires to commit an offence in the belief that he or she was a participant in a controlled operation, to reflect recent changes to Division 2 of Part 2 of the Crimes Act 1958 which changed the terminology related to the law of complicity.

Clause 31 repeals section 135 of the Fisheries Act to abolish the Licensing Appeals Tribunal.

Clause 32 amends section 136 of the Fisheries Act to provide that a person who is aggrieved by a reviewable decision may apply to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal for a review of the decision (rather than the Licensing Appeals Tribunal which is being abolished).

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Clause 33 amends section 142 of the Fisheries Act to remove the provision providing immunity for members or deputies of the Licensing Appeals Tribunal, to reflect the abolition of that body by clause 31 above.

Clause 34 amends section 145A of the Fisheries Act, which allows the Victorian Fisheries Authority to provide details of levies collected to a representative body, allows the Authority to impose conditions on the supply of those details, and makes it an offence to breach a condition. Clause 34 substitutes section 145A(4) with new sections 145A(4) and (5) to reflect the recent changes made to Division 2 of Part 2 of the Crimes Act 1958 to change the terminology related to the law of complicity.

Clause 35 amends section 150(2)(b) of the Fisheries Act, which relates to royalties prescribed in regulations in relation to a licence or permit, to clarify the wording of the provision.

Clause 36 substitutes section 153E(1)(b) of the Fisheries Act, which relates to restrictions on commercial net fishing in Port Phillip Bay, to provide that the holder of a Western Port/Port Phillip Bay Fishery Access Licence is not authorised to use fishing nets in Port Phillip Bay after receiving compensation. This clause also repeals section 153E(2) the substance of which is re-enacted in new section 153I(3) inserted by clause 37.

Clause 37 inserts new section 153I(3) of the Fisheries Act, to allow the 8 holders of a Western Port/Port Phillip Bay Fishery Access Licence who are entitled to receive compensation of $205 000 on 1 April 2022 to elect to receive that compensation on an earlier date. The holders will not be able to use fishing nets in Port Phillip Bay from 1 April 2022 or the earlier date as provided in new section 153E(1)(b) inserted by clause 36.

Clause 38 inserts a new section 163F of the Fisheries Act, which contains a transitional provision for proceedings of the Licensing Appeals Tribunal which is being abolished by clause 31, to provide that any appeal proceeding for which hearings had already commenced must be continued as if the Licensing Appeals Tribunal had not been abolished.

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Clause 39 makes statute law revision amendments to sections 60 and 153C of the Fisheries Act to remove a duplicated word and to correct a spelling error.

Part 6—Amendment of the Game Management Authority Act 2014

Clause 40 amends section 3 of the Game Management Authority Act 2014 to insert a definition of Secretary for the purposes of new section 8(3) and section 16(3) of that Act being the Secretary of the Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport, and Resources. Section 16(3) is being amended by clause 45 below.

Clause 41 insert a new section 8(3) into the Game Management Authority Act 2014 to require the Game Management Authority (the Authority) to operate consistently with any governance framework agreed between the Minister responsible for the administration of that Act, the Secretary, and the Authority.

Clause 42 inserts a new section 8A of the Game Management Authority Act 2014 containing principles that the Authority must have regard to when exercising its powers or performing its functions under that Act being the following—

a principle of integration to promote a whole of government approach, encourage information sharing, and promote better service delivery;

triple bottom line analysis to ensure consideration of economic, social, and environment costs and benefits;

the principle of equity amongst stakeholders;

an evidence-based approach to decision making;

a principle of stakeholder (including community) consultation and engagement; and

transparency in decision making to promote accountability and facilitate public scrutiny.

Clause 43 replaces sections 11(6) and (7) of the Game Management Authority Act 2014 with a new section 11(6) to clarify the provisions and to provide that, if there are less than 6 months remaining on the term of the departing member, the member's

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office can remain vacant for that remainder of the departing member's term.

Clause 44 inserts a new section 11A of the Game Management Authority Act 2014 to provide for the Deputy Chairperson to act as Chairperson if the office of chair is vacant or the Chairperson is absent or unavailable. The new section also allows another member to act as Deputy Chairperson if the office of deputy chair is vacant or the Deputy Chairperson is absent or unavailable.

Clause 45 amends section 16(3) of the Game Management Authority Act 2014 to update the definition of relevant person to reflect the change in responsible department from the former Department of Environment and Primary Industries to the Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport, and Resources.

Clause 46 amends section 17 of the Game Management Authority Act 2014 to reflect the fact that the CEO of the Authority is no longer employed under Part 3 of the Public Administration Act 2004 and to clarify the functions and powers of the CEO.

Clause 47 amends section 24 of the Game Management Authority Act 2014 to make a minor clarifying change following the insertion, by clause 40, of a new definition of Secretary for that Act.

Clause 48 similarly amends section 25 of the Game Management Authority Act 2014 to make a minor clarifying change following the insertion by clause 41 of a new definition of Secretary for that Act.

Part 7—Amendment of the Livestock Disease Control Act 1994

Clause 49 amends section 8 of the Livestock Disease Control Act 1994 (the LDCA 1994), which concerns the separation of livestock, to insert a new heading.

Clause 50 amends section 8A of the LDCA 1994, which concerns vendor and livestock agent declarations to clarify this section.

Clause 51 amends section 11 of the LDCA 1994 to allow inspectors to permit fodder or other material to be moved into a quarantined area subject to conditions.

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Clause 52 amends section 12(1) of the LDCA 1994, which concerns offences for exposing diseased livestock to clarify that subsection and to allow an exemption to be given to a class of persons or in respect of a class of livestock (in addition to named individuals).

Clause 53 amends section 13 of the LDCA 1994, which concerns the isolation of livestock, to insert a new heading and to allow an inspector to order the separation of livestock in addition to complete isolation.

Clause 54 amends section 16(2A) and (2B) of the LDCA 1994, which contain offences for submitting samples and specimens to be tested, analysed or examined without specifying all of the prescribed information and for failing to notify the Secretary of the results of tests, analyses, exams of samples and specimens, to increase the penalties for non-compliance from 10 penalty units to 30 penalty units.

Clause 55 amends section 72(2) of the LDCA 1994, which concerns payments from the Cattle Compensation Fund, to remove restrictions regarding payments out of capital or interest.

Clause 56 amends section 79B(2) of the LDCA 1994, which concerns payments from the Sheep and Goat Compensation Fund, to remove restrictions regarding payments out of capital or interest.

Clause 57 amends section 115 of the LDCA 1994, to allow an inspector who orders livestock to be examined, tested, vaccinated, inoculated, or treated to provide, in the treatment notice, that the owner or person in charge of the livestock must keep the affected livestock or any affected livestock products separated or isolated from other livestock or livestock products or that the affected livestock or livestock products not be sold or moved.

Clause 58 amends section 126(1) of the LDCA 1994, to prescribe offences under section 8A of that Act, which concern vendor declarations and livestock agent declarations, and offences under section 16(2A) and (2B), which concern testing of samples and specimens, to be infringement offences.

Clause 59 makes a statute law revision amendment to the definition of vendor declaration in section 3(1) of the LDCA 1994 to correct a punctuation error.

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Part 8—Amendment of the Meat Industry Act 1993Part 8 of the Bill amends the Meat Industry Act 1993 (the Meat Industry Act) to allow vehicles, such as mobile abattoirs, to be able to be licensed as meat processing facilities and to provide that facilities that are only used to process game that is not intended for sale, do not need to be licensed. Section 5(1)(b) of the Meat Industry Act also disapplies the slaughtering of animals on a farm from the operation of that Act.

Clause 60 amends section 3(1) of the Meat Industry Act to amend the definitions of abattoir, general meat processing facility, and pet food processing facility to allow those terms to be capable of including vehicles.

Clause 61 amends section 38 of the Meat Industry Act, which contains an offence of processing game intended for human consumption at an unlicensed facility, to cover vehicles and to provide that the licensing requirement does not apply to facilities that only process game that is not intended for sale. New section 38(3) inserted by subclause (2) is not intended to come within the meaning of section 72 of the Criminal Procedure Act 2009 which places the evidential burden on an accused to prove an exception.

Clause 62 amends section 40 of the Meat Industry Act, which contains an offence of operating a meat processing facility without a licence, to cover vehicles and to not apply in relation to facilities that only process game that is not intended for sale. New section 40(3A) is not intended to come within the meaning of section 72 of the Criminal Procedure Act 2009, which places the evidential burden on an accused to prove the exception.

Clause 63 amends section 72(2) of the Meat Industry Act, which relates to powers of inspection, to provide that vehicles can be searched and make other changes to clarify that section.

Part 9—Amendment of the Melbourne Market Authority Act 1977

Clause 64 amends section 3 of the Melbourne Market Authority Act 1977 (the MMA 1977) to update the definition of appointed day to specify the date which was 1 April 1978, to repeal the definitions of fruit and vegetables which refer to a now repealed Act, to repeal the definition of market area in light of the prior

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repeal of section 27 which made provision for a market land to be reduced by a declaration under section 27, and to amend the definition of market land to reflect the transfer of the market in 2013 from its previous West Melbourne site to the current Epping site.

Clause 65 is a tidy-up provision that provides that, if any land in West Melbourne is still market land for the purpose of the MMA 1977, that land ceases to be market land on the coming into operation of the revised definition of market land being inserted by clause 64 above.

Clause 66 substitutes section 7(3) of the MMA 1977 to allow the Melbourne Market Authority to enter into leases, tenancies, permits and licences as lessee, tenant, permittee or licensee for terms of 10 years or less without the consent of the Minister.

Clause 67 amends section 13A of the MMA 1977 to remove the requirement for meetings of the Melbourne Market Authority to occur monthly and to allow the Authority to determine the frequency of its meetings.

Clause 68 amends section 20 of the MMA 1977 to allow the Melbourne Market Authority to enter into contracts in which the consideration is no more than $750 000 (up from $250 000) without the Minister's approval.

Clause 69 amends section 26 of the MMA 1977 to make minor changes as a result of the change to the definition of market land being made by clause 64.

Clause 70 revokes a 1998 Government Gazette notice enlarging the market land in West Melbourne to reflect the transfer of the market from West Melbourne to Epping.

Clause 71 amends section 35 of the MMA 1977 for clarity and to remove the reference to the Farm Produce Wholesale Act 1992, which has been repealed.

Clause 72 amends sections 38 and 38A of the MMA 1977, which concern market by-laws, to replace the references to market area with references to market land to reflect the repeal of the definition of market area by clause 64 above.

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Clause 73 repeals the transitional and savings provisions in sections 39, 42, and 45 of the MMA 1977, which are now spent or redundant.

Clause 74 inserts a new section 47 of the MMA 1977 to provide that any reference to the Melbourne Wholesale Fruit and Vegetable Market in any existing instrument or document is to be taken to be a reference to the Melbourne Wholesale Fruit, Vegetable, and Flower Market.

Clause 75 repeals Schedule 2 of the MMA 1977, which contained a plan of the former West Melbourne market site.

Clause 76 inserts a new Schedule 3 of the MMA 1977, which contains a plan of the current Epping market site.

Clause 77 amends sections 6, 7, 15, 21, 34, 37 and Schedule 1 of the MMA 1977 to change references to the Melbourne Wholesale Fruit and Vegetable Market to the Melbourne Wholesale Fruit, Vegetable, and Flower Market.

Clause 78 amends sections 10, 13A, 18, 20, 21, 23, 24, 35 and Schedule 1 of the MMA 1977 to replace gender-specific language with gender-neutral language.

Part 10—Amendment of the Plant Biosecurity Act 2010

Clause 79 amends section 3(1) of the Plant Biosecurity Act 2010 (the Plant Biosecurity Act) to substitute new definitions of assurance certificate and plant product. The new definition of assurance certificate clarifies that an assurance certificate is a certificate issued by an accredited person. The new definition of plant product clarifies that part of a flower, fruit, nut, see, leaf, bulb, corm, tuber, or stem of a plant includes juice of a plant.

Clause 80 substitutes a new section 8(1C) of the Plant Biosecurity Act to require a person who imports, introduces, or brings prescribed material into Victoria or moves prescribed material from a restricted area of Victoria into another part of Victoria to ensure that the prescribed material either meets the prescribed condition requirements or has been tested or treated in accordance with prescribed requirements.

Clause 81 inserts new section 19(3) to (5) of the Plant Biosecurity Act to allow the Governor in Council in a control area order to authorise

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an inspector to issue directions to owners and occupiers of land to prune fruit trees, treat or contain affected plants, grow resistant or tolerant plants, destroy plants, treat earth material, used packaging or used equipment, or take any other prescribed control action within a control area. Contravention of a direction will constitute an offence under new subsection 19(5) with a maximum penalty of 60 penalty units.

Clause 82 amends section 105 of the Plant Biosecurity Act, which prescribes the procedure for taking samples under that Act to remove the requirement for an inspector to pay for a sample where the market value of the sample is negligible and to require an inspector to divide a sample into 3 parts only where this is practicable.

Clause 83 amends section 141 of the Plant Biosecurity Act to allow regulations to be made prescribing treatment requirements for plant vectors and beehives (that Act already allows treatment requirements to be prescribed for other plant material) and to allow regulations to be made prescribing condition and testing requirements.

Part 11—Amendment of the Veterinary Practice Act 1997

Clause 84 amends section 14 of the Veterinary Practice Act 1997 (the VPA 1997), which provides that suspended practitioners are not to be considered to be registered, to clarify that this does not apply for the purpose of Part 3 of that Act, which concerns investigations into professional conduct and ability to practice (which likely led to the suspension).

Clause 85 amends Division 3 of Part 3 of the VPA 1997 to insert a new Subdivision heading before sections 34 to 39, which concern informal hearings.

Clause 86 substitutes a new section 35(2) of the VPA 1997 to insert a new paragraph (c) that allows the President of the Veterinary Practice Board to appoint a lawyer who is not a member of the Board but is approved by the Governor in Council to sit on a panel if the Board considers it desirable.

Clause 87 amends section 40 of the VPA 1997 to provide that a person who was the subject of an informal hearing has 45 days to request a

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formal hearing for a review of the findings and determinations of the informal hearing.

Clause 88 amends Division 3 of Part 3 of the VPA 1997 to insert a new Subdivision heading before sections 40 to 46, which concern formal hearings.

Clause 89 amends section 45 of the VPA 1997 to increase the maximum fine that can be imposed on a veterinary practitioner following a formal hearing for unprofessional conduct from $2000 to $10 000.

Clause 90 amends section 46 of the VPA 1997, which concerns formal hearings into the ability to practise, to clarify subsection (1)(a).

Clause 91 substitutes section 59(1) of the VPA 1997, which contains offences for false, misleading and deceptive advertising, offering inducements, and unfavourably contrasting the services of another veterinary practitioner to divide section 59(1)(a) into 3 provisions.

Clause 92 inserts a new section 80A into the VPA 1997 allowing the Veterinary Practice Board to appoint enforcement officers for the purpose of serving infringement notices and applying for and executing search warrants.

Clause 93 substitutes a new 81(1) of the VPA 1997 to require the Veterinary Practice Board to provide enforcement officers with identification cards.

Clause 94 inserts a new section 86A into the VPA 1997 to allow authorised persons to issue infringement notices in relation to infringement offences under that Act (or regulations made under that Act).

Clause 95 amends section 88 of the VPA 1997 to allow regulations to prescribe infringement offences and infringement penalties in relation to those infringement offences.

Part 12—Amendment of the Wildlife Act 1975

Clause 96 amends the definition of relevant offence in section 71 of the Wildlife Act 1975 to provide that an offence in respect of which a controlled operation can be conducted includes the offence in section 44(3) of that Act of hunting, taking, or destroying taxon

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of game during an open season without a licence or other authorisation.

Part 13—Amendment of other Acts

Clause 97 amends Schedule 1 of the Confiscation Act 1997 to provide that the new offence in section 116(2A) of the Fisheries Act 1995 of hiding and concealing fish, inserted by clause 27 above, is an offence for which a court may make a restraining or forfeiture order.

Clause 98 inserts section 99(3) into the Conservation, Forests and Lands Act 1997 to allow different penalties to be prescribed in respect of the same fisheries infringement offence prescribed for the purposes of section 91(1) of that Act according to the gravity of the offending.

Clause 99 amends section 3 of the Crown Land (Reserves) Act 1978 to provide that authorised officers for the purpose of the Land Act 1958 include authorised officers appointed under the Game Management Authority Act 2014.

Clause 100 amends the definition of litter enforcement officer in section 4 of the Environment Protection Act 1970 to provide that litter enforcement officers for the purpose of that Act include authorised officers appointed under the Game Management Authority Act 2014.

Clause 101 amends section 153A of the Firearms Act 1996 to provide that authorised officers for the purpose of that section include authorised officers appointed under the Game Management Authority Act 2014.

Clause 102 amends section 2A of the Land Act 1958 to provide that authorised officers for the purpose of that section include authorised officers appointed under the Game Management Authority Act 2014.

Part 14—Repeals

Clause 103 provides for the repeal of the Broiler Chicken Industry Act 1978, the Broiler Chicken Industry (Amendment)

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Act 1991 and the Livestock Disease Control Amendment Act 2007.

The Broiler Chicken Industry Act 1978 established the Broiler Industry Negotiation Committee, allowed the Committee to set the standard price that chicken processors must pay to chicken growers for chickens, allowed regulations to be made prescribing terms and conditions to be inserted in contracts between chicken growers and chicken processors, allowed the Committee to resolve disputes between chicken growers and chicken processors, and created offences for non-compliance with its provisions. The Broiler Industry Negotiation Committee last sat in July 2001. Victoria is the only state whose legislation has not been repealed. In 1999, a National Competition Policy review determined that the 1978 Act was anti-competitive and recommended that it be repealed. However, at that time, there were still existing contracts operating under the 1978 Act. Affected growers have now been transitioned to new contracts negotiated under an Australian Competition and Consumer Commission authorisation and the 1978 Act is now redundant and can be repealed.

The Broiler Chicken Industry (Amendment) Act 1991 can also be repealed as all its amending provisions are spent and the transitional provision in section 11 is redundant.

The Livestock Disease Control Amendment Act 2007, except sections 6, 7, and 8, came into operation on the day of Royal Assent. Sections 6, 7, and 8 of the Livestock Disease Control Amendment Act 2007 were to make changes to sections 71 and 72 and repeal section 77 of that Act, amendments which concerned the Cattle Compensation Fund. Those amendments were overtaken by subsequent changes made by the Primary Industries and Food Legislation Amendment Act 2012. As a result, the Livestock Disease Control Amendment Act 2007 is redundant and can now be repealed.

Part 15—Repeal of amending ActClause 104 provides for the automatic repeal of this amending Act on

1 July 2020. The repeal of this Act does not affect in any way the continuing operation of the amendments made by this Act (see section 15(1) of the Interpretation of Legislation Act 1984).

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