International Trade Integrity Bill introduced

The Government's response to the AWB Cole Inquiry Report is contained in the International Trade Integrity Bill 2007.

UPDATE 26 September. Act as passed: International Trade Integrity Act 2007

The International Trade Integrity Bill amends the Charter of the United Nations Act 1945, the Customs Act 1901, the Criminal Code Act 1995 and the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 by introducing the following offences:

Amendments to the Charter of the United Nations Act 1945 to:

·      create a new offence for people who, or corporations which, engage in conduct that contravenes a UN sanction in force in Australia with increased penalties for breaches

·      introduce strict liability for corporations which engage in conduct that contravenes a UN sanction in force in Australia, including in relation to UN counter-terrorism financing sanctions

·      create a new offence for people who, or corporations which, knowingly or recklessly provide false or misleading information in connection with the administration of UN sanctions, including in relation to the issuance of permits or authorisations

·      create a provision which invalidates any permission granted under information that is false or misleading in a material particular

·      grant agencies responsible for administering UN sanctions the required information gathering powers to determine whether UN sanctions are being complied with and improve information sharing among government agencies, and

·      require persons to retain, for five years, documentation in connection with permit applications and compliance with permit conditions.

Amendments to the Customs Act 1901 to:

·      introduce new criminal offences for importing or exporting goods sanctioned by the United Nations (UN-sanctioned goods) without valid permission, andintroduce a new criminal offence for providing information that is false or misleading in a material particular, or omits a material particular, in an application for a permission to import or export UN-sanctioned goods.

Amendments to the Criminal Code Act 1995 to:

·      ensure the defence under section 70.3 to a charge of bribing a foreign public official is only available where the advantage paid to a foreign official is expressly permitted or required by written law, regardless of the results of payment or the alleged necessity of payment, and

Amendments to the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 to:

·      ensure that payments to foreign public officials are tax deductible only where the benefit paid is expressly required or permitted by written law, regardless of the results of payment or the alleged necessity of payment, and

·      align the definition of facilitation payment with that in the Criminal Code Act 1995.