That the Community Affairs Legislation Committee be authorised to hold a public meeting during the sitting of the Senate on Thursday, 12 August 2004, from 4 pm, to take evidence for the committee's inquiry into the provisions of the Commonwealth Electoral Amendment (Preventing Smoking Related Deaths) Bill 2004, the exposure draft of the Tobacco Advertising Prohibition (Film, Internet and Misleading Promotion) Amendment Bill 2004 and the adequacy of the ACCC response to date on issues concerning tobacco.

That the time for the presentation of the report of the Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport Legislation Committee on the administration of AusSAR in relation to the search for the Margaret J be extended to 12 August 2004.

That the Senate recognise the importance of maintaining local content quotas for free-to-air television, pay television and radio at their current levels and the role that these quotas play in ensuring that Australians continue to see and hear Australian faces and voices through their popular media.

That the Senate—

That the Senate—

That the time for the presentation of the report of the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade References Committee on the current health preparation arrangements for the deployment of Australian Defence Forces overseas be extended to 12 August 2004.

That the Senate—

(a) notes that the report of the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) inquiry on bushfire mitigation and management was provided to COAG members on 2 April 2004; and

(b) requires the Minister representing the Prime Minister to table in the Senate, no later than 5 pm on Monday, 9 August 2004, the report of the inquiry.

That the Senate—

(a) notes that the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) and its ministerial councils are increasingly being used as decision-making forums, reaching binding formal agreements which bypass effective parliamentary and public scrutiny;

(b) considers that this device undermines the authority of parliament; and

(c) calls on the Government to:

(i) hold COAG and ministerial council meetings in open session, and

(ii) submit binding agreements of COAG and ministerial councils to parliament for ratification before implementation.

That the Senate—

(a) notes:

(i) that James Hardie Industries was a significant producer of asbestos products in Australia, and

(ii) preliminary reports that James Hardie Industries may have deliberately underfunded its compensation scheme and moved its headquarters offshore to avoid or minimise its future compensation liabilities;

(b) calls on the Government to:

(i) take all possible steps to ensure that James Hardie Industries pays full and fair compensation to the victims or the families of victims injured or killed by the asbestos products that James Hardie Industries produced, and

(ii) join local councils in boycotting all James Hardie Industries products and services until it is satisfied that all of James Hardie Industries' current and future compensation liabilities are met; and

(c) calls on all political parties to redirect any donations they have received from James Hardie Industries into a trust fund for these victims and their families.

That the Senate—

(a) notes the recent Government decision to award an $18 million Airservices Australia contract for the manufacture and supply of fire engines to an Austrian firm, Rosenbauer, in preference to a Hunter Valley company, the Varley Group;

(b) condemns this decision for:

(i) failing to promote regional industrial development, and

(ii) missing an opportunity to create 60 direct jobs and up to 180 indirect jobs in the Hunter region, including 10 to 15 apprenticeships;

(c) notes the Government procurement guidelines which require that government contracts must take account of:

(i) the development of long-term, internationally competitive industry in Australia,

(ii) enhancement of Australia's export potential and import replacement, and

(iii) employment, training and skills development, and initiatives in regional areas;

(d) condemns the Government for breaching its own procurement guidelines in awarding this contract;

(e) congratulates the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union for leading a campaign to overturn this misguided Government decision; and

(f) calls on the Government to reopen the tender and reconsider the bid in light of the breach of the procurement guidelines and the need to create sustainable long-term manufacturing jobs in the Hunter region.