Committee Details

Committee's Report

The committee tabled its report on the Public Health and Other Legislation (Further Extension of Expiring Provisions) Amendment Bill 2021 on 6 August 2021. The Bill was passed with amendments on 2 September 2021.

About the Bill

On 16 June 2021, the Minister for Health and Ambulance Services, the Hon Yvette D’Ath MP, introduced the Public Health and Other Legislation (Further Extension of Expiring Provisions) Amendment Bill 2021 (Bill) into the Queensland Parliament.  On 18 June 2021, the Bill was referred to the Economics and Governance Committee for its consideration and report to the Parliament by 6 August 2021. 

Objectives of the Bill

In light of continuing risks associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, including recent recurrences of community transmission, the Bill proposes to:

• further extend the operation of a range of legislative measures implemented to facilitate the health response to COVID-19 and to minimise economic and other impacts
• implement additional, minor improvements to those provisions, to:
  • clarify that quarantine directions may be served electronically
  • establish a new prepayment system for quarantine fees, including allowing for the prescription of cohorts for whom fees must be paid in advance or for whom fees may be waived, and supporting more flexible payment and collection arrangements (including refund provisions).

The extension provisions follow previous temporary extensions effected by a series of Acts of Parliament in late 2020 and 2021, under which the majority of measures are due to expire on 30 September 2021. The Bill would extend this legislative expiry date to 30 April 2022, or an earlier date to be prescribed by regulation.

The temporary measures which are to be further extended include:

• increased powers for emergency officers and the Chief Health Officer to impose restrictions on the movement and interactions of persons, facilitate contact tracing, and enforce quarantine requirements
• amendments relating to attendance requirements for meetings of various groups and agencies and for the conduct of proceedings of courts/tribunals and other bodies (including provisions to facilitate remote attendance, voting, and authorisations using audio or audio-visual links)
• modified notification requirements (allowing electronic notification) for certain proposals for community consultation or for the issuing of notices to individuals
• various amendments relating to planning requirements and environmental approvals
• amendments relating to access to relief measures for tenants and commercial lease holders
• amendments relating to bodies corporate and the manufactured homes sector (including providing for the deferral of fee contributions and limitations on increases to site rent)
• various measures to facilitate the holding of state by-elections and local government by-elections and fresh elections in a COVID-safe manner
• provisions enabling variations to liquor licensing to support temporary takeaway sales by operators of licensed venues disrupted by COVID-19
• public health related provisions governing the care of persons with a cognitive or intellectual disability, the delivery of mental health services, the operation of prisons and youth detention centres, and related measures.

Call for submissions

Submissions are now closed. Submissions accepted by the committee can be accessed under the "View Submissions" tab.

Timeline