{"id":272722,"date":"2025-11-05T09:17:17","date_gmt":"2025-11-05T09:17:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/272722\/"},"modified":"2025-11-05T09:17:17","modified_gmt":"2025-11-05T09:17:17","slug":"serious-gaps-in-labors-environment-laws-undermine-attempt-to-fix-broken-system-integrity-experts-say-australian-politics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/272722\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Serious gaps\u2019 in Labor\u2019s environment laws undermine attempt to fix broken system, integrity experts say | Australian politics"},"content":{"rendered":"

Political integrity experts have raised concerns about Labor<\/a>\u2019s proposed new nature laws, including a contentious new \u201cnational interest\u201d exemption, as pressure mounts on the Albanese government to rethink major parts of the reform.<\/p>\n

As debate on legislation to overhaul the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act resumes in the lower house on Tuesday, the Centre for Public Integrity has identified several \u201cintegrity risks\u201d that threaten to undermine attempts to fix the broken system.<\/p>\n

The thinktank has joined a chorus of critics \u2013 including environment groups, the former Treasury secretary Ken Henry<\/a> and Labor MP Ed Husic \u2013 in raising alarm about a new exemption that would allow the minister to approve a project in breach of new nature laws if it was in the \u201cnational interest\u201d.<\/p>\n

While the environment minister, Murray Watt, has insisted the power was designed for projects linked to defence, security or national emergencies, he hasn\u2019t been able to rule out the possibility it could be used for other applications \u2013 including fossil fuel developments \u2013 because of the discretionary nature of the exemption.<\/p>\n

\u201cDespite the claims to a limited application, the centre holds grave concerns about the scope, transparency, and accountability of the exercise of the discretion,\u201d the thinktank wrote in an analysis of the bill published on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

The thinktank was also concerned about the apparent lack of independence of the government\u2019s proposed independent environment protection agency.<\/p>\n

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Under Labor\u2019s model, the regulator would exercise some functions at arm\u2019s length of the government, including policing of nature laws, but the minister would keep the power to approve projects.<\/p>\n

The retention of ministerial decision-making power was a key demand of the Coalition and industry groups, but has been criticised by environmentalists.<\/p>\n

The centre\u2019s report said it was \u201chighly unusual\u201d for an independent regulator to cede such \u201csignificant powers\u201d to a minister.<\/p>\n

\u201cPublic confidence and trust in environmental decision making would be better served if responsibility lay with an independent body, free from political influence and less susceptible to vested interests,\u201d the report said.<\/p>\n

The centre\u2019s head of research, Gabrielle Appleby, said the government\u2019s bill was flawed.<\/p>\n

\u201cEnvironmental decision making is especially prone to capture by vested interests \u2013 that\u2019s why integrity safeguards must be strong,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cYet these bills leave serious gaps: the new regulator lacks independence and appropriate powers, and the minister retains sweeping powers to sidestep environmental protections. The government has the solutions in front of it \u2013 it just needs the will to close these loopholes and build a system Australians can trust.\u201d<\/p>\n

The thinktank criticised the government for developing the legislation largely behind \u201cclosed doors\u201d in consultation with select stakeholders.<\/p>\n

It also raised concerns about the process for creating new national environment standards, which were the main recommendation of the Samuel review that inspired the reforms.<\/p>\n

While the bill establishes a power for the minister to make, vary, or revoke new green rules, the standards themselves aren\u2019t included in the legislation.<\/p>\n

The thinktank said the standards should have been detailed in the legislation and subject to parliamentary approval. The minister is planning to consult on the design of the standards before their introduction, starting with those applying to matters of national environmental significance and offsets.<\/p>\n

Labor\u2019s grassroots environment action group is now lobbying the government to make two amendments to the bill, which it ultimately wants passed after years of internal campaigning to fix the EPBC Act.<\/p>\n

The first would remove or limit the \u201cnational interest\u201d carveout by giving parliament the power to disallow the decision through a majority vote in either house.<\/p>\n

The second would abolish a \u201ccontinuous use\u201d exemption that allows historically legal agricultural land clearing, particularly in Queensland, to continue without the need for federal approval or oversight.<\/p>\n

This exemption is also used by state governments to justify shark netting programs that pose a threat to endangered whales.<\/p>\n

The national secretary of Labor Environment Action Network, Janaline Oh, said there was a strong case for national interest exemption that could be used in national emergencies, but there was a significant risk that a minister could abuse that power and the power should be limited.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the case where a project is of such overriding national interest that it can be allowed to have even unacceptable impacts, the government should go through an additional process of parliamentary scrutiny,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

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