Page 1505 - Week 04 - Thursday, 29 March 2012
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Training. The designated authority is responsible for approving providers of courses to overseas students. The amendment also limits the provision to course providers for overseas students at schools.
The amendment is necessary because the role of the ARC in relation to vocational education and training and higher education providers is being substantially diminished due to developments under commonwealth legislation. The National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011 of the commonwealth and the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency Act 2011 of the commonwealth establish entities that will be the designated authorities in the territory in relation to vocational education training and higher education providers.
As the minister is already responsible under the Education Act 2004 for establishing schools and approving the registration of non-government schools for domestic students, it is considered appropriate for the minister to approve providers of courses for overseas students at the same schools.
The Working with Vulnerable People (Background Checking) Act 2011 is amended in schedule 1 to replace existing table 3, which provides that the act applies to regulated activities mentioned in an item in the table in the year mentioned in relation to the item. The revised table changes the years in which the act applies to the regulated activities of services for migrants, refugees and asylum seekers, housing and accommodation, prevention of crime and emergency services personnel and mental health because of the review that will occur in its fourth year of operation, as provided for in section 70 of the act.
Schedule 2 provides for non-controversial structural amendments of the Legislation Act initiated by the Parliamentary Counsel’s Office.
Structural issues are particularly concerned with making the statute book more coherent and concise and, therefore, more accessible. Strategies to achieve these objectives include avoiding unnecessary duplication and achieving the maximum degree of standardisation of legislative provisions consistent with policy requirements and operational needs.
The schedule amends the Legislation Act to include new definitions in the dictionary, part 1, of “Australian citizen” and “fire and rescue” for ease of reference across the statute book. Amendments have also been made to the definitions of “chief officer (fire brigade),” “emergency service” and “fire brigade” to reflect the recent change of name of the ACT Fire Brigade to ACT Fire and Rescue.
Schedule 3 includes amendments of acts and regulations that have been reviewed as part of the ongoing program of updating and improving the language and form of legislation. These amendments are explained in the explanatory notes and are routine, technical matters, such as the correction of minor errors, improving syntax and omitting redundant provisions.
In particular, amendments have been made to a range of acts and regulations as a consequence of the inclusion of new definitions of “Australian citizen” and “fire and
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