Williamson Maurice: Border Processing (Trade Single Window and Duties) Bill — Second ReadingText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeWilliamson Maurice: Border Processing (Trade Single Window and Duties) Bill — Second Reading[Sitting date: 20 February 2014. Volume:696;Page:16212. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]Hon MAURICE WILLIAMSON (Minister of Customs): I moveThat the Border Processing (Trade Single Window and Duties) Bill be now read a second time. The bill was introduced to Parliament in July 2013 and had its first reading on 27 August last year. The bill is an omnibus bill. It amends the Customs and Excise Act 1996 the Biosecurity Act 1993 and other related border legislation. It has been reported back to this House from the Foreign Affairs Defence and Trade Committee and I would like to thank the members of that committee for the prompt attention they gave this bill. The committee received just three submissions on the bill—so I accept that it is not one that gets talked about around the breakfast table—including one accompanied by an oral submission.The bill makes important amendments to existing legislation to underpin the implementation of the Trade Single Window component of the new Joint Border Management System. The Trade Single Window component of the system provides a single electronic gateway for industry to interact with Government agencies for customs and biosecurity requirements and filing. The Trade Single Window will promote more effective protection of New Zealand’s border and facilitate a smoother flow of legitimate trade and is consistent with the Government’s priorities relating to the provision of more joined-up online services.The bill contains three main categories of amendments that underpin the implementation of the Trade Single Window: registering users of the Joint Border Management System; providing information to and receiving information from the Trade Single Window; and consequential changes to offences. The bill also makes minor technical changes to the Customs and Excise Act 1996 to provide more clarity and improve the effectiveness of the Act to meet Government policy goals for border management.The Customs and Excise Act 1996 requires that all goods imported or exported must be entered into the Customs Service computer system by individuals these being importers exporters or their agents who are registered users of the system. The Trade Single Window will provide for a wider range of border requirements. For example registered users will be able to provide and receive information on the movement of their goods streamlining their supply chains. The bill amends several aspects of the Customs and Excise Act to ensure that there are appropriate registration mechanisms for access to and the use of the Joint Border Management System. The areas covered by the amendments include allowing companies to be registered users instead of only individuals. Specific grounds on which the Chief Executive of the Customs Service canrefuse an application are included. It also allows the Chief Executive of the Customs Service to issue unique user identifiers for the Joint Border Management System that can be used with both the Customs Service and the Ministry for Primary Industries for border-related purposes. That is a big step forward.The Trade Single Window will use the new international data model from World Customs Organization for lodgment messages supporting access for our exporters and reducing compliance costs for the industry. The new lodgment messages will include customs biosecurity and food safety - related information enabling the Customs Service and the Ministry for Primary Industries to receive more accurate and current information to better identify and target potential risks to New Zealand. Several amendments will assist in supporting how information is provided to the Trade Single Window. These amendments cover advance notices of arrival and departure for all goods and crafts crossing our border—inward and outward cargo reports—and establish a more effective trans-shipment process for the national movement of goods.Additionally the bill amends the Customs and Excise Act to provide the Chief Executive of the Customs Service with the ability to prescribe customs rules that reflect other border-related requirements such as health biosecurity and maritime safety. This will be done using a process agreed by the chief executives of those various agencies. This process will promote clarity and consistency in industry and reduce the administrative burden of maintaining multiple and often disparate requirements from the various Government agencies. Basically it becomes a one-stop shop.To enforce the amendments contained in the bill some consequential changes to offences are necessary. These amendments relate to advance notice of the arrival of goods and craft and of the departure of goods and craft. The bill makes a number of corresponding amendments to the Biosecurity Act 1993 to ensure its alignment with the Customs and Excise Act. The bill also makes consequential amendments to other related border legislation.The bill includes some minor technical changes to provide more clarity and improve the effectiveness of the Customs and Excise Act to meet the Government’s policy goals. These amendments include updating the definition of “motor spirits” to reflect the 2012 changes to the excise and excise-equivalent duties table in the Act and clarifying the duty calculation that may be used for goods re-imported into New Zealand. The change will allow the Customs Service to assess duty using a calculation approach that is set out in an international convention. The bill delegates the power to exempt certain international organisations from excise and excise-equivalent duty on alcohol and tobacco from the Minister of Customs to the Chief Executive of the Customs Service.Finally the bill enables regulations to be made that prescribe valuation methods and the value for an import consignment below which duty need not be collected by the Customs Service known by most of us as the de minimis. This is intended to make it simpler to change the de minimis threshold in the future should any future Government wish to do so. It is not intended to review the level of the de minimis in this bill however.I also acknowledge the contribution made by the Foreign Affairs Defence and Trade Committee on this very difficult issue. The Foreign Affairs Defence and Trade Committee has recommended the bill proceed with two amendments. The committee has proposed new clause 15 to address the submission made by the New Zealand Retailers Association. The clause makes consultation mandatory with representative groups whose interests are likely to be substantially affected by proposed changes to regulations governing the de minimis and that would seem quite sensible. This amendment will increase the rigour of the minimum duty provisions and provide confidence to business and individuals about the way regulations are made for tax andduty-related matters. I am very happy to accept this amendment in order to provide assurance to members of the public and the trading community.The committee on the recommendation of the Ministry for Primary Industries and the Parliamentary Counsel Office has also proposed an amendment to one of the levy provisions in the Biosecurity Act. This amendment will more avoid doubt by clearly providing for the making of biosecurity levy orders that enable the levy to be paid at more than one rate and that can set the actual levy rate or rates. The amendment aligns the provisions in the Biosecurity Act on biosecurity levy orders with other provisions in the legislation.I once again want to say thank you to the members of the Foreign Affairs Defence and Trade Committee for their work. They did it very quickly they did it very thoroughly and I am very delighted at the work that they produced back to this House. I recommend this bill to the House.