Additional comments from the Coalition

The Coalition believes that the short amount of time given to the Committee to conduct this inquiry was inadequate and did not allow stakeholders sufficient time to prepare evidence.

While agreeing with the general drive of the Broadcasting Services Amendment (Improved Access to Television) Bill 2012, the Coalition adds additional commentary to the report in order to raise some legitimate concerns with the Bill. Our consultations with industry suggested there were several areas where imprecise drafting or insufficient clarity in the Explanatory Memorandum created a potentially unfair and uncertain situation for broadcasters in relation to reporting requirements, programs finishing after midnight, international pass-through channels, and strict liability for certain breaches.

The Coalition therefore moved amendments in the House to that effect that the Government was nonetheless unwilling to consider. The Coalition is of the belief the Bill could be improved upon without in anyway reducing the level of service and assurance that is provided to users of this service. We acknowledge the importance of the provision of the captioning service to people in the hearing impaired community, and recommend the Bill not be opposed.

 

Senator Bridget McKenzie

Senator for Victoria

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