Page 3782 - Week 11 - Thursday, 24 November 2022
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
possible. I will continue to work with my health minister colleagues across the country, as well, to accelerate national action in this space. I do want to commend Minister Butler—and indeed the former minister, Minister Hunt, for his commitment, which was not supported widely in his party room or through the National Party. But Minister Butler, I am sure, will be able to undertake effective reform, as previous Labor governments have done, on tobacco.
The bill also addresses an issue of national consistency with respect to the regulation of medicines and poisons. The bill amends the Medicines, Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act to extend the application of commonwealth therapeutic goods laws in the ACT. The change will enable the Therapeutic Goods Administration to take action against sole traders operating wholly within the ACT in relation to matters arising under the Commonwealth Therapeutic Goods Act.
This change aligns with the Council of Australian Governments’ commitment to adopt a nationally consistent approach for the management of medicines, poisons and therapeutic goods. Within the scope of this change is the regulation of nicotine-containing e-cigarettes, as well as other poisons. As such, the bill increases the available regulatory resources and agencies for dealing with nicotine containing e-cigarettes.
While the changes to the legislation are small and technical in nature, the bill also introduces important measures to ensure that the legislation in the territory continues to support efforts to reduce smoking rates in our community.
The bill will also help DonateLife ACT to provide the best care and support to bereaved families and loved ones who have provided the generous gift of donation, as Ms Cheyne has been talking about. The bill amends the Transplantation and Anatomy Act 1978. Currently, the act does not clearly permit officers to release information about organ or tissue donors.
The bill, as presented, enables the lawful release of this information when a request is received from a bereaved family for acknowledgement of a person’s donation for the purposes of the Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act. Such an acknowledgement can provide solace to bereaved family members as they are able to have their loved one’s gift officially and publicly acknowledged.
In presenting the bill I foreshadowed that the government would move an amendment to the bill that seeks to ensure that, with appropriate consent, DonateLife ACT staff are able to share the stories of bereaved families at commemorative events such as the DonateLife service of remembrance and thanksgiving and other commemorative occasions without contravening the privacy and protections under the Transplantation and Anatomy Act.
I will speak to those amendments during the detail stage of the debate. However, I would like to acknowledge Minister Cheyne for her continued support and advocacy for those in the community who are touched by organ donation. I also want to thank members of the community and the staff of DonateLife ACT who have advocated for the need for these amendments. While the amendments to the Transplantation and Anatomy Act are a further step in the right direction, we acknowledge that the
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video