I rise to inform the house of a new government initiative that embeds further safeguards in the port of Melbourne lease transaction documents to ensure that the port runs efficiently and remains Australia’s premiere container port. The proposed transaction structure includes the most rigorous regulatory regime ever applied to a privately operated port. We are not complacent and are continuing to look at ways to secure the economic future of our state.

Following productive discussions with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), I am pleased to inform the house that the framework will now include additional protections against abuse of market power by the private operator, additional disclosure requirements relating to the port growth regime and market rent review clauses in all rental contracts. The ACCC chairman, Rod Sims, has acknowledged the improvements and stated:

We acknowledge the changes that the government has made and that they certainly move the dial quite a lot from our point of view.

The ACCC recognises that the proposed leasehold arrangements will be the most comprehensive regime applied to any private port in the nation, and the ACCC is not the only organisation to welcome these changes and safeguards. The infrastructure minister for Tasmania, Rene Hidding, described these changes as another big win for Tasmania. It is dark days when you have to look south across Bass Strait to see some visionary leadership from the Liberal Party. The member for Malvern’s hypocritical backflip has brought that on. You have to wonder why the Leader of the Opposition is tolerating it.