CHAIR—We have a number of Queenslanders around the table, so I am sure you are going to get some questions.

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Senator McLUCAS—I always ask questions about staffing, and I think you would be disappointed if I did not. Do you have an update on the staffing for the committee, please, Ms Chadwick?

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Ms Chadwick—A little while ago, Mr Barrett and I were concerned that you may foil us by not asking this question or a question about Reef HQ, given we felt that we were so well prepared. I can tell you that our current staffing level is 190.43.

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Senator McLUCAS—My recollection is that that is slightly up. Is that correct?

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Ms Chadwick—It is indeed. I think it is 1¼ or 1¾ persons, or thereabouts. Last time it was 188-point something.

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Senator McLUCAS—The location of those staff generally reflects last estimates?

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Ms Chadwick—Yes, they are largely Townsville based. With such a minor variation, as you could imagine, it is basically a few vacancies being filled, balanced by a few people going on leave and so forth.

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Senator McLUCAS—How is Reef HQ travelling?

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Ms Chadwick—Given the work that has been done by Mr Barrett I will defer to him, if that is acceptable to the committee.

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Mr Barrett—The aquarium is functioning very well at the moment. Our results for the first quarter of this year are eight per cent up on revenue compared to last year, and we are currently tracking very well.

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Senator McLUCAS—That is good. You will provide us with a hand-up document that reflects that?

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Mr Barrett—Of visitor numbers? Certainly.

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Senator McLUCAS—Given that we do not have a lot of time, I really only have two issues that I want to canvass. Mr Borthwick might be able to help with this as well. This is following the tabling of the review of the operations of the authority. Two of the issues that I would like to ask some questions about this evening are the recommendation that the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority Act aligns with the EPBC Act. It is probably a question to you, Mr Borthwick. How do you see that happening? I know that we legislated change, but what will happen as a result of that aligning of the two acts?

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Mr Borthwick—That is something to be examined and we did not address the detail of that in our report. It basically came out of the observation that the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority Act was 30 years old. The Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act came into being in 1999. When the authority’s act came into being it did not envisage the EPBC Act, so at the moment you can have overlaps between the two pieces of legislation when it comes to scrutinising a major development within a marine park authority; a requirement to look at it under the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act and under the EPBC Act.

One of the things that we propose, which the government accepted, is that the EPBC Act should have dominance, if that is the right word, in looking at major proposals. It would be up to the minister to either delegate that to the authority to look at in terms of the EPBC Act or to have the department look at it. For example, if it raised major cost or jurisdictional issues, or if it raised issues that extended beyond the boundaries of the marine park, it might be the department that does that, but that was left open. So it is from those broader issues to aligning some of the descriptions in the GBRMPA Act with the EPBC Act in terms of, say, the precautionary principle which was a later concept introduced in the EPBC Act, right through to looking at alignment of compliance activities and the like. But as we get more detail on that it is something that we will be working through very closely with the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority to see exactly what legislation changes are needed, either to their act or to the EPBC Act.

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Senator McLUCAS—I want to go to the question of compliance, Mr Borthwick, and why it was seen by your review as more effective. I understand your need for streamlining, but it is the question of the effectiveness of the two acts in terms of compliance and enforcement.

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Mr Borthwick—We very much had in mind in our review that the Commonwealth is going to look at compliance and enforcement and the relevant levels of fines, or those sorts of things, as part of a general look at Commonwealth legislation and we wanted to make an alignment with that as it happens. That is not to preclude there being interim changes in terms of compliance and enforcement activity which the authority can pursue in the interim period, for which I know Ms Chadwick has been looking at options.

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Senator McLUCAS—Ms Chadwick, did you have some comments about compliance and how this will work under a harmonised, if that is the right word, EPBC Act and Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act?

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Ms Chadwick—I would have to reiterate the words of the secretary. If there is some way that we can further ensure that there is consistency in a whole-of-government approach to the issue of compliance, then I would certainly welcome that because in the last few years we have worked very hard to develop what I think is a pretty good surveillance and compliance system. But that has actually meant that we have been working with the Navy, Coastwatch, Queensland Boating and Fisheries Patrol, EPA, our day-to-day management programs, federal police and DPP. So we are already engaged, sometimes contractually, but we are certainly engaged with a vast array of Commonwealth and state agencies to develop the program we have now. So I am not anxious in any way at the thought of any further tweaking or alignment that can be done from a whole-of-government approach.

But we have, I hope, been attuned to the views of the community. Last week I think it was—the 24th of this month—there were some minor changes that were regulated and, in fact, introduced into our compliance regime and that effected some changes to some offences in conservation or yellow zones. We have now had encouragement from the minister to respond to community concerns in relation to issues to do with some fishing offences in green zones. We will be effecting some regulatory change there. So, as the secretary said, as issues emerge or in terms of the overall compliance in the GBR, as opportunities for further partnerships emerge, we will be seizing those opportunities. I would hope that it is in that sort of open spirit that we can approach any further alignment to achieve consistency from a whole-of-government approach.

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Senator McLUCAS—Just using the example of last week’s change to the yellow zone compliance regime, what is being proposed under the new system? How would that work?

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Mr Borthwick—There is a range of things, if my recollection of our report is right. In some areas the penalties under the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act are less than the penalties under the EPBC Act. In some cases it might be better to have civil penalties which are not envisaged—I think I am right—in terms of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act rather than the criminal route. But these were options that we proposed that we develop with GBRMPA in consultation with the Attorney-General’s Department, because that department is looking at the broad sweep of penalty