Biosecurity Amendment (Enhanced Risk Management) 2021

# Biosecurity Amendment (Enhanced Risk Management) Bill 2021 ## What it does This bill updates Australia's biosecurity laws to strengthen how we manage disease and pest risks coming into the country. It tightens rules for aircraft and ships arriving in Australia, increases penalties for breaking those rules, and gives authorities better tools to assess and respond to biological threats. ## Why it matters Biosecurity directly affects what diseases and pests can enter Australia, which impacts food prices, farming, public health, and our unique environment. Stronger enforcement and clearer rules make it harder for dangerous organisms to slip through customs undetected. ## Key details - **Tougher penalties**: Ship and plane operators who don't follow arrival procedures now face civil penalties—up to 1,000 penalty units ($210,000+) for operators, or 300 units for crew in charge. These replace the old penalties in the existing law. - **Who's responsible**: The bill clarifies that both the *operator* of a vessel/aircraft AND the *person in charge* can be held accountable, closing a loophole where responsibility was unclear. - **Rollout timeline**: Most changes take effect immediately after royal assent. However, some new human health measures (Part 2) and risk assessment rules will be introduced later by government proclamation, with a 6-month window before they automatically kick in.

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