Goldsmith PaulLAND TRANSPORT AMENDMENT BILL (NO 2)Third ReadingHon PAUL GOLDSMITH (Minister for Tertiary Education Skills and Employment) on behalf of the Minister of Transport: I move That the Land Transport Amendment Bill (No 2) be now read a third time. I am very pleased to speak on the third reading of such an ambitious piece of legislation. The bill will modernise regulation of small passenger services update rules for heavy vehicles support the effectiveness of public transport operations and improve road safety.The first part of the bill addresses alcohol interlocks which are a very effective tool for reducing the incidence of repeat drink-driving. They work by requiring a driver to pass a breath test before they can start their vehicle. Evidence shows that interlocks are effective in protecting the safety of the public and that they reduce reoffending rates by an average of 60 percent while the devices are fitted. The bill makes alcohol interlocks mandatory for first-time high-alcohol offenders and repeat offenders with limited grounds for exceptions proposed. The bill also sets out how the mandatory alcohol interlock sentence applies when other offences with disqualification penalties have been committed. The Government will fund a financial assistance scheme to assist low-income offenders where the cost could be prohibitive. Greater use of alcohol interlocks by high-risk offenders will help improve road safety outcomes and supports the Government's road safety strategy. The bill creates a sound foundation on which to further develop the interlock programme in the future.The second part of the bill addresses the Government's commitment to supporting a well-functioning public transport system. We want to prevent a culture of evasion of fares from becoming established. This is because the evasion of fares is essentially theft and affects the efficiency of public transport services. The bill strengthens the legislative regime for managing evasion of fares. It gives enforcement officers new powers to require passengers to provide evidence that they have paid a fare provide their contact details when evidence of payment is not produced and/or order a passenger to disembark a public transport service. It will be an offence for a person to fail to comply with an enforcement officer's directions. The changes in the bill will enable enforcement officers to deal with most cases of fare evasion. The police could be called in more difficult cases involving non-compliant passengers and would continue to attend more serious cases involving antisocial behaviour.The third part of the bill implements increases to the penalties for drivers who fail to stop for police. When drivers attempt to flee they endanger the safety of other road users and the police as well as their own safety and that of their passengers. All too frequently the actions of fleeing drivers result in crashes involving serious injury or death. Increasing the penalties for fleeing drivers will send a clear message that this behaviour is unacceptable and will not be tolerated. The disqualification penalties for failing to stop will also scale up based on whether it is the driver's first second third or subsequent offence of this kind. The bill also proposes strengthening the powers of the courts to permanently confiscate vehicles involved in fleeing driver incidents.The fourth part of the bill makes key changes to the regulation of heavy vehicles. It enables more efficient enforcement of heavy vehicle weight limits makes it easier to redirect vehicles for weighing and increases the maximum penalty for overloading. The changes will lead to productivity and safety gains with fewer heavy vehicle trips being required on the transport system to transport the same volume of passengers and freight.The fifth part of the bill addresses the fact that new technologies like smartphone apps are changing the way the small passenger services sector can operate. Modernising our regulatory framework ensures we can keep pace with these changes and make sure it is flexible enough to accommodate new business models while managing safety risks. The bill together with the amendments to regulations and land transport rules will overhaul small passenger services by removing outdated provisions and bringing the sector into the 21st century to allow all transport providers to operate and compete on a more even footing.Finally the bill introduces a range of minor amendments to clarify interpretations or the intent of the legislation improve its operation remove inconsistencies and make minor technical adjustments. Although minor these changes are a sign of the Government's commitment to better regulation.I want to thank the members of the Transport and Industrial Relations Committee for their work on this bill as well as those who submitted on it or who made contributions in different ways. Taken together the changes proposed by this bill demonstrate the Government's determination to ensure the country has an effective efficient and safe land transport system. I commend the bill to the House.