Page 4550 - Week 15 - Tuesday, 14 December 1993
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It was our concern that this Bill would result in some way in there being an unrealised responsibility on the shoulders of an insured person to pay stamp duty, and that may still be the case, although I am assured that the Government's intention is not to pursue individuals who inadvertently breach this law but, rather, large companies, corporations, who regularly exploit their situation to avoid - arguably the word there is "avoid" - stamp duty obligations in Australia, and in this case in the ACT. If Mrs Jones decides to insure her Etruscan vase, which is difficult to insure in Australia, with a company in London, she will be nominally liable for payment of stamp duty, even though it is possible that in paying her premium for her insurance she is also paying a component of stamp duty for the contract of insurance in London.
However, the Government assures me that these are not the sorts of people it is after with this arrangement and that in any case there is a very significant problem of enforcement. The problem of enforcement was raised with the Opposition by the Insurance Council of Australia. I think it is worth noting that this Assembly was well advised to have left this matter off the agenda until this week because a body like the Insurance Council of Australia, with a very significant interest in the outcome of this legislation, in fact knew nothing of the legislation coming before this Assembly.
Mr Cornwell: Why not?
MR HUMPHRIES: The reason, to answer Mr Cornwell's interjection, is that they were not advised.
Ms Follett: Who was it?
MR HUMPHRIES: This is the Insurance Council of Australia, who one would think, with a piece of legislation dealing with insurance, might have been consulted about the passage of the legislation.
Ms Follett: They were.
MR HUMPHRIES: That is not my advice, Madam Chief Minister. My advice is that they knew nothing about the legislation before it arrived on the floor of the Assembly. In fact, when I rang the Insurance Council's representative in Canberra last week to ask what they thought of this legislation, they said, "What legislation?". I must say that it is one more small but significant example of how this Government just does not bother to find out what the people of this Territory think about legislation that might affect them.
Ms Follett: It is their idea.
MR HUMPHRIES: The Chief Minister interjects - quite contrary to standing orders, of course, Madam Speaker - that the origin of this idea is that the Insurance Council wants to tighten up on insurance controls. That may be the case. It may have been an idea that originated with the Insurance Council, but I think it would be fair for the Government, having acted on that particular matter, to advise the council that it proposed to do so. It certainly had no idea that it was coming up, and that is a somewhat unreasonable position to be in.
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