Melissa Horne, the Victorian Minister for Ports & Freight, introduced a major port reform bill into the the Victorian parliament earlier this week.
The Transport Legislation Amendment (Port Reforms and Other Matters) Bill 2022 will, if passed, make a sweeping range of reforms in Victoria.
The Bill is based on the recent review of the Victorian port system (see “Further reading,” below).
“The Review found that the high level of fragmentation that existed in 2020 impacted the State’s ability to plan and coordinate. It has also reduced confidence in the safe, efficient, and effective functioning of the ports system. Further, the disruptions and stresses placed on supply chain arrangements during the early stages of COVID-19 pandemic also highlighted some specific safety related challenges. It demonstrated some of the dangers associated with fragmentation of harbour master functions. It also highlighted that the Victorian Government had limited ability to influence or control the provision of key port operations functions, such as pilotage and towage,” Ms Horne told Parliament.
As Ms Horne noted in parliament, the Victorian government has already implemented the main recommendation which was to establish Ports Victoria.
The Bill defines the Victorian port system and links the objectives of Ports Victoria to this definition.
“The implications are that [the responsibilities of Ports Victoria] are to promote and facilitate trade; support strategic planning and development; undertake operational activities; and provide technical and consultancy services in relation to the whole of the Victorian ports system, not just the commercial trading ports”.
Two existing bodies, the Victorian Regional Channels Authority and the Victorian Ports Corporation (Melbourne) were subsumed into the new body.
The new Bill
- embeds Ports Victoria into legislation and abolishes its predecessors
- implements review recommendations in relation to local ports, port development strategies and regulatory arrangements relating to harbour masters, towage and pilotage
- updates the name and objects of the Port of Hasting Development Authority to reflect its current role and its likely future function
The Bill will also give Ports Victoria greater influence and control over the provision of towage and pilotage services in Victoria. A licensing regime will be governed by the bill and it will be an offence to provide towage services without a licence. The Bill will also specify the processes that Ports Victoria must follow when setting requirements and standards for the provision of towage; grants powers to Ports Victoria to specify licence conditions; sets the licence period to five years; specifies the application process for licences and the renewal of licences; specifies the application process for licences and the renewal of licenses and the processes by which licenses by be suspended or cancelled.
Ports Victoria will also have the ability to set different standards and requirements across different ports and port waters.
Transport Safety Victoria will retain responsibility for licensing individual pilots and registering pilotage service providers, however, the Bill provides that registration must follow the issue of a licence by Ports Victoria.
The review also noted that some oversight arrangements are spread across multiple bodies in Victoria and the new bill gives Ports Victoria the power to request that Transport Safety Victoria impose or modify conditions on harbour master licences. Ms Horne added that “the expectation is that, unless the licence condition or limitation requested by Ports Victoria is unreasonable, then it should be implemented by Transport Safety Victoria. It is intended that licence conditions will be imposed to ensure that harbour masters not directly employed by Ports Victoria are required to participate in training and safety development programmes, report marine incidents and provide information when requested on operational safety performance.”
The bill also makes a wide range of other, technical, amendments.
Ms Horne commented in a media release that “With freight volumes expected to more than double over the next 30 years, the safe and efficient operation of our ports is vital to Victoria’s economic growth and this bill is another significant step to improving the operation of our ports. These changes will make our port system more efficient, adaptable and ready to support growth and recovery.”
Further reading:
- Discussion of Victoria’s port system is underway (July 2020)
- Shipping Australia Limited Submission on to the Review of the Victorian Ports System (August 2020)
- “Independent review of the Victorian Ports System; initial government response,” Victorian Department of Transport, (February 2021)
- New ports regulator for Victoria (26 February 2021)
- Victorian ports shake-up following independent review (26 February 2021)
- Victoria announces board of new Ports Victoria (16 June 2021)
- Victorian ports under review – a year of change (04 February 2022)
