Release of exposure draft of amended Defence Trade Controls Regulation for public consultation

An exposure draft of the Defence Trade Controls Regulation 2013 is now available for public consultation.  The draft Regulation is available for comment until 4 March 2013.

The Defence Trade Controls Act 2012 was passed by Parliament on 31 October 2012 and received Royal Assent on 13 November 2012.  The Regulation was previously released for consultation in late 2011 but has been redrafted to reflect amendments to the Act and comments received during previous consultations.  In particular, provisions relating to record-keeping and Australian community member employee requirements have been simplified.

The Act implements the Australia-United States Defence Trade Cooperation Treaty.  The Treaty will create a framework for trade between Australia and the United States in certain defence articles, technologies and services without the need for individual United States or Australian export licences.

The Act also strengthens Australia’s existing export control measures by regulating the intangible supply of technology relating to defence and strategic goods, and regulating the brokering of defence and strategic goods and technology.  These measures eliminate identified gaps in Australia’s export control system, align Australia with the accepted international best practice and contribute to international efforts to prevent proliferation of sensitive technology.

A Strengthened Export Controls Steering Group has been appointed by the Minister for Defence to advise on implementation of the strengthened export controls provisions of this new legislation.  Over a two-year implementation period, this Steering Group will test the strengthened export controls through a program of pilot studies, and will recommend any necessary amendments to the legislation.

Interested sectors and the public can access and make comment on the draft Regulation and the draft Explanatory Statement on the Defence Export Control Office (DECO) website: www.defence.gov.au/deco

Further information on the draft Regulation please email deco [at] defence.gov.au

Media contact:
Defence Media Operations (02) 6127 1999