Ms GAMBARO (1:45 PM) —I rise to speak on the Census Information Legislation Amendment Bill 2000. I see the Minister for Financial Services and Regulation is in the House at the moment. I note that he introduced the bill to the House and delivered the second reading speech on 17 February. The bill allows the National Archives of Australia to keep 2001 census information of records for future use. It is a wonderful initiative. After a closed period of 99 years it will be possible for future genealogists and researchers to access the 2001 census information to learn about life in Australia in the first year of the new millennium. Won't be that an exciting time, Mr Deputy Speaker.

Explicit consent must be provided by households completing the census form before the information can be preserved in the National Archives. In a period where we are carefully thinking about our national identity, what it is like to be an Australian, this will be a very valuable contribution to the historical record of Australian society as we all know it now. While we look forward to celebrating the Centenary of Federation this year, future generations of the bicentenary of Federation will be able to enjoy learning about the social and cultural make-up of our current generations.

The Census Information Legislation Amendment Bill 2000 follows recommendations by the Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs in a report entitled Saving our census and preserving our history. It is widely acknowledged that the Australian census is highly regarded for its accuracy and excellent research outcomes. The Australian Bureau of Statistics provides periodic estimates of the population of each of the states, territories and local government via the census. I must commend it on the wonderful work that they do. There is very little that the Bureau of Statistics will not tell you these days about any demographic make-up of a particular area, population, age and other well-known demographics.

Results also provide information about the small geographic housing areas within geographically located areas. Census data assists with the compiling of monthly employment and unemployment statistics as well as assisting in planning administration, policy development and activities of governments, business and other users, particularly in infrastructure projects such as roads, highways and other major projects that are put together in the future. It is also a very valuable tool for social research. It is important that we understand social culture and attributes and that future generations understand where we have come from. History is a very valuable tool for looking at such things. We can look at the social and economic circumstances of a particular group of people or a particular population at a particular time. As I mentioned earlier, this is an absolute must for governments and other planning authorities. As we look to projects like roads and railways, that is so essential.

This information also plays a part in public expenditure, with federal governments using the results to plan spending on federal programs such as vocational education and training. Training in particular is an area that is very dear to me, as is skilling of the work force and knowing where our expected shortages will occur. We need to look at it on an overall basis across the states and also across Australia so that we can anticipate these shortages and prepare for what the careers of the future might be.

These results are put to very practical use and provide some very positive outcomes for the community. It is interesting to note—the previous member spoke of the census history—that the census information has been collected in Australia probably since 1911. That was the first census. The usual information taken then was on basic things such as age, sex, marital status as well as things like citizenship and birthplace. That was a very important census. However, it is really only since the early 1980s that information such as the mode of travel to work and motor vehicle licences held have been collected, which is a very interesting development as we have only gone back as far as 1980. I imagine the results of these kinds of questions will be very interesting for the people looking at them in 99 years time. In keeping with the Privacy Act 1988, householders who do not consent to this initiative will have their census information destroyed as it has been in the past. That is important to note.

While the results of the census have been invaluable for current decision making, they can also be very useful for future decision making. In the electorate of Petrie, which has a very rich historical history, many community members give their time voluntarily to research and record its history. In the absence of census, it is very important to have those local historians. Redcliffe was the first settlement city in Queensland. In 1824 the Governor of Brisbane sent the Amity under Captain Penson to start a new colony and ultimately a free settlement in the Redcliffe area. This was the beginning of Queensland. Whilst the penal settlement was later moved to Brisbane, the Redcliffe peninsula was the first settlement in Queensland. Through hard work, details of time are being put together and will be placed in a new museum in Redcliffe. I would like to pay tribute to the Redcliffe museum and the wonderful part that they will play in preserving the history of Redcliffe. One can imagine in the year 2001 information such as holograms might be used to depict real people and real images to light that which occurred some 99 years earlier. Much of the information in the museum has been preserved through pure luck. These amendments today will be a wonderful opportunity to provide a valuable record about the current state of Australian society for all future generations. I commend the bill to the House.