Aviation Consumer Protection Bill 2026, Aviation Consumer Protection (Consequential Amendments and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2026, Aviation Consumer Protection Levy Bill 2026, Aviation Consumer Protection Levy (Collection) Bill 2026
Ms JARRETT (Brisbane) (12:53): One of my favourite movies is Love Actually. The opening scene shows people arriving at airports. They're hugging and smiling, and there's lots of happiness to go around.
But, sadly, as we all know, that's not always the case. There can be frustration. There can be tears if you miss that 80th birthday party because you have a late flight or if you arrived only with the bag you carried on board.
That's why I rise to speak in support of the Aviation Consumer Protection Bill package. We know that air passengers in Brisbane and across Australia deserve better. I'm pretty sure it's safe to say that almost everyone in this chamber has been on a plane.
Whether it's a holiday, a business trip or a family emergency, Australians are flying. In fact, in 2024-25, 60 million passengers flew within Australia and 43 million passengers flew in and out of Australia. That's a lot of people.
Amongst them are people, as I'm sure we all know, who have landed without their luggage. Sometimes it's returned late; sometimes it's not returned at all. They've had their flight cancelled or their flight delayed.
Aviation clearly connects Brisbane to Australia and to the rest of the world. It's the bridge that connects Brisbane to the regions. It's critical to our social connection.
It's critical to our economic growth and development. It sends Queensland produce and exports to other parts of the world and other parts of our great country. We live in a vast continent, and we often have to travel long distances to see family and friends.
I think Australians probably rely on aviation a little more than many other people around the globe. The recent events in the Middle East have shown how Australian travellers in times of global crisis can experience disruption and uncertainty, and these periods also show us how important it is to protect Australians when they're flying. I've heard many stories of young people and families in Brisbane who have had flights cancelled or delayed or bags mishandled feeling helpless to assert their rights.
In fact, many people don't even know their rights, and they don't know where to turn. It's a common story that consumers in these situations often have to spend hours on the phone resolving complaints and cancellations, and they do it themselves. It's very frustrating.
That's due to the current voluntary industry arrangements. Earlier this year at Easter time, we saw national disruptions, and there were reports of passengers experiencing long delays, struggling to reach customer support and waiting long lines in airports. Simple trips like these to connect with loved ones and friends across Australia really should not result in a major ordeal for the passengers.
That's why this legislation is so important. Knowledge of consumer rights is actually quite low. Seventy-nine per cent of Australians report they know either nothing or just a little bit about their consumer rights when travelling by air.
We also know that many disabled Australians encounter problems with wheelchair handling and delays, which is simply unacceptable. The current system of airlines policing themselves just hasn't worked. People with disabilities, medical conditions or injuries experience barriers, and they are less satisfied with their air travel.
A recent study showed that around a quarter of travellers surveyed identified as having a disability or a medical condition or injury. Two out of five Australians with a disability, medical condition or injury did not know how to access services available to them. That's almost 40 per cent.
We know there is a gap between Australian passenger rights and those in other developed countries, and it really doesn't make sense that Australians would have weaker consumer legal rights on the same flight under EU or Canadian law. In our first term, the Albanese Labor government released the Aviation white paper: Toward 2050, passed new laws to boost competition at Sydney airport, released a draft passenger charter of rights and reinstated ACCC monitoring of airlines that the LNP had planned to end.
The ACCC monitoring of airlines as part of the aviation white paper reforms has served an important function. We see that global uncertainty in the aviation industry may lead to unreasonable and excessive price increases for Australian travellers. Whether during COVID or now with the recent global conflicts, in periods of heightened instability, unreasonable price rises for consumers need to be monitored.
This scrutiny of airline conduct is important to identify and respond to any potential anti-competitive behaviour and to protect consumers. Under the proposed laws, the Albanese government is undertaking historic reforms to the aviation sector. This legislation is designed to better protect Australian passengers so that they are treated fairly by the major airlines and airports, which are big corporations.
This bill package will hold the aviation industry to account to deliver better outcomes for consumers and will improve consumer protections in the aviation sector. We are delivering Australian-first aviation consumer protections that will clarify airline obligations and the minimum level of assistance required when a scheduled flight is disrupted. This legislation will establish an independent Aviation Consumer Ombudsperson to assist with resolving independent consumer complaints and provide a fair and independent external dispute resolution process.
It allows for the creation of the Aviation Consumer Protections Charter, which will set the minimum standards and will provide systemic monitoring, compliance and enforcement of those standards by the Aviation Consumer Protection Authority. It will also enable the authorisation of an external dispute resolution scheme to provide aviation-specific complaint-handling services and, importantly, establish the Aircraft Noise Ombudsman as a function within the department.
This will ensure that the ANO, as it's referred to, is independent of Airservices Australia and the Department of Defence. The ANO will review the management of aircraft noise complaints by Airservices Australia and the Department of Defence. The new consumer protection framework will reshape the way consumers interact with the industry, providing the protections they need when things go wrong, but it will still support an affordable and competitive aviation sector, which is really important.
This framework will set consumer standards for services from airlines and assist customers in resolving complaints, including those related to delays, cancellation and baggage. In developing these reforms, the government has undertaken extensive consultation with the aviation industry, with consumer groups and with the public. This legislation strikes the right balance between providing meaningful protection for passengers while maintaining a competitive and sustainable aviation sector.
These reforms will reshape the way consumers interact with the aviation industry, providing better booking information and clarity with the protections they need when things go wrong while supporting a sustainable and competitive industry. The charter will create obligations for airlines and airports towards consumers in the event of a flight disruption, delay or cancellation.
It will also contain minimum standards in relation to booking information, assistance and communicating with consumers about complaints handling. Opaqueness can often be a very large source of frustration. The charter provides a level of flexibility for aspects of the framework to be updated as the aviation consumer protection framework evolves and as the needs of our community evolve.
Providing flexibility in this way will ensure that the framework can evolve and adapt in response to changes across the industry and across our community while still maintaining a focus on governance and continuing to have appropriate minimum standards for consumer protection. To support greater transparency and accountability, the Aviation Consumer Protection Bill will facilitate the reporting and publication of reasons for flight delays, flight cancellations and disruptions.
It'll be to the department and consumers respectively. This will assist the regulator and the ombudsperson to determine whether or not a disruption, delay or cancellation was within or outside the relevant entity's control. Both the ombudsperson and the regulator will also have an advocacy role ensuring consumer concerns are heard and actioned by conducting inquiries, advising government and promoting best practices.
The ombudsperson and the regulator will provide consumer focused education and best practice advice to consumers, to the industry and to government on complaints handling. This package of bills establishes the Aviation Consumer Protection Authority. It's a regulatory function that will sit in the department to administer and enforce the charter.
The ACPA, as it's called, is necessary to keep airlines and airports accountable for the charter requirements. That's something that the stakeholders told the government they wanted the framework to do. The ombudsperson scheme will work to resolve eligible complaints.
The regulator will focus on investigating and responding to systemic and serious breaches of the charter. As I mentioned earlier, this package also establishes the aviation consumer ombudsman scheme. It's an impartial external dispute resolution body to help resolve eligible complaints by aviation consumers who have been unable to resolve their dispute with the airline or the airport directly.
It will ensure that the complaint resolution process is impartial, procedurally fair and transparent and that a solution is provided in an efficient and effective manner. The current system of self-regulation has not delivered effective complaint resolution services, which is why the government is introducing this framework. I've heard this quite regularly in my community.
In addition to its complaint-handling function, the ACO would also provide education and guidance and promote some best practices. This could include releasing reports and other factual materials that can contribute to the development of our regulatory framework and policies. They can refer conduct to other bodies as appropriate.
As a candidate, I heard often how aircraft noise was an issue for some people living in Brisbane. They were frustrated by the process. They felt no-one was listening to them.
This had been an ongoing issue for years, including under those opposite. As a candidate, I listened and I joined them in calling for an independent ombudsman to handle the noise complaints. It really is hard for a local community—mums, dads, small-shop owners, people who are busy—to stand up against big airline companies, to stand up against big airports and to feel that they will be listened to, especially when the reviewer is one of the entities in question.
This government responded after extensive consultation. The legislation establishes the Aircraft Noise Ombudsperson to conduct investigative reviews into how Airservices Australia and the Department of Defence handle aircraft noise complaints, the community consultation processes regarding changes affecting aircraft noise and how aircraft noise information is presented and distributed.
The ANO will be established in the department and be independent of Airservices Australia and independent of the Department of Defence. This is consistent with the commitment made in the Aviation white paper to separate the function from the entities it reviews. The ANO may also publish independent reports and make recommendations to the government for policy or regulatory change.
The events over the last few months have shown how times of global crisis can impact us domestically. The conflict in the Middle East has led to flight and fuel disruptions and broader uncertainty for travellers here and abroad. We've seen passengers who are unsure of what to do next, what to do when things go wrong and what resources are available to them if their flights are in fact cancelled or delayed.
Living on this vast continent, we often have to travel long distances to see families and friends. Our goods have to travel long distances to get to where they need to be. This can be the case whether within Australia or somewhere else around the world.
Australian travellers should have the same consumer protections as travellers in other developed countries. That's why the Albanese government is delivering on our commitment to hold the aviation industry accountable for delivering better outcomes for consumers. This bill will improve outcomes for consumers and ensure the aviation sector is accountable for the services they offer.
This bill is focused on aviation consumers. However, it will also support a competitive and sustainable aviation sector that's critical to our economic growth and development. As we look ahead, we have the Brisbane 2032 Olympics on the horizon.
We're expecting millions more to arrive in our skies from overseas or to travel within the country. Our aviation sector, our airlines and our airports need to be world class, and they need to provide world class services. This will help support that.
This package of bills will help ensure we see more of those smiling faces and the happiness of people arriving at airports around the country, like what we see in the closing scene of Love Actually. I commend these bills to the House.