MARK DREYFUS MP

With an estimated 1.2 billion people worldwide living within 100 kilometres of a coastline and 50 per cent of the world's population likely to do so by 2030, it is essential to safeguard Australian coasts with the amendments introduced by this bill, which I commend to the House.

It is the sound policies of the Rudd Labor government and the neglect by the former government that the people of Gippsland will have in their minds when they go to vote this Saturday.

In simple terms, these amendments alter section 79 of the Judiciary Act and restore to the states the protection of limitation periods in state laws which put a time limit on suing state governments to recover taxes paid under a law later found to be invalid.

Despite dramatic change and growth in Australia as a nation over the last 100 years, Australia's Constitution remains very much as it was originally drafted

More than most other areas of policy, urban planning calls for an active role from government because we have a collective interest in the form of our cities.

This bill serves two purposes: it enables the recognition of the Australian Ex-Prisoners of War Memorial in Ballarat as a memorial of national significance and it provides us with a mechanism for recognising other memorials as nationally significant.

The re-establishment of a real role for the Commonwealth in the field of dental health, which is what this legislation represents, is a reflection of this government's belief in the importance of the role of the national government in public health.

The reform of the mental health system, using the new stepped care model that has been adopted in South Australia, will deliver an estimated 86 additional adult beds across all levels of care, bringing the state total to 516 adult mental health beds.

The rules of evidence applied in Australia regulate the conduct of disputes in courts and tribunals. They determine the evidence which is admitted and the shape of both the form of proceedings and how courts and tribunals go about deciding disputes. The rules of evidence are a very important part of our system of justice.

The Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme is very important to the people of Australia. Along with Medicare and public hospitals, it forms a cornerstone of our public health system.