Mrs GASH (7:47 PM) —Tonight I want to raise the matter of the Y2K millennium bug, or, as we oldies understand it, the possibility that things with a computer chip in them will not work in the year 2000. Despite state Labor MPs' stories to the contrary, the federal government has been very active in promoting options, solutions and cooperative pathways for individuals, companies and all levels of government to ensure a smooth entry to the new millennium. Forums were held in capital cities during July, August and September, and they involved national speakers from the telecommunications, banking, finance and aviation infrastructure sectors. State speakers represented the water, electricity, gas and transport sectors.

In February, the Commonwealth government enacted the Year 2000 Information Disclosure Act. Better known as the Good Samaritan legislation, it encourages organisations to be open about their level of Y2K readiness. The states have assisted by enacting legislation to complement the Commonwealth act. There is an enormous amount of information freely available to everyone on the Internet. This week a Y2K community brochure `You and the millennium bug' was released, which is designed to provide detailed Y2K information for households. The brochure has been produced in consultation with the states, territories and industry. The timing of this information has been important, as only now the public is seeking to know more.

One example of the attitudinal change now becoming obvious in my electorate of Gilmore is that local electrical retailers are saying that, previously, customers would joke about the Y2K bug as they purchased their goods, but now they are coming in with the details of their purchases over the last 10 years, asking what will be okay and what will not. As the time draws near, people in my electorate are beginning to really think about the possible consequences. However, the Commonwealth is well on track to being prepared for smooth delivery of its key services over the New Year period. It will be business as usual.

Back in 1998 we undertook to raise awareness and understanding by business, especially small to medium enterprises. The government has also made it financially attractive for business to address the Y2K issue by making most of the year 2000 software expenditure tax deductible. As a result of these activities, both the globally respected GartnerGroup and a United States Senate special committee have ranked Australia alongside the United States, United Kingdom and Canada in the top tier of the best Y2K prepared nations in the world.

The BBC has named Australia and Finland as the safest destinations for tourists over the date change. However, that is no reason to be complacent. State reporting is crucial to maintaining our position at the top of the ladder. Also in today's global community no country can isolate itself from Y2K problems that other nations might experience, so the Commonwealth government is working with governments and industry in other countries to meet the challenges presented by the international dimension of the Y2K. This includes the promotion of Y2K compliance of international sectors such as aviation, telecommunications and shipping.

We are taking a consistent position on an issue of national and international importance. To do this we have to face the facts, not the fiction. The federal government has been providing industry and the Australian community with the necessary information to address and manage the Y2K problem in a commonsense manner. Some other interesting facts are that Australian private enterprise will spend about $10 million to $12 million, and the federal government is spending $600 million on Y2K remediation and testing. Very few systems are expected to be non-compliant by the end of September, so we are about as ready as we can be. The information for householders and the like, contained in the new brochure `You and the millennium bug', has been compiled in a very readable and timely fashion. I, for one, will be distributing it throughout the 67 villages and towns in my electorate of Gilmore.

The division of the responsibilities of federal and state governments is clear: at the federal level we are responsible for the national systems of banking, communications, finance, aviation and the like, and the states and territories are responsible for their systems, such as water, gas, electricity and transport. We have been working together to ensure that Australia and its systems move into a new millennium with little or no fuss—aside from the parties that we are going to have, of course.