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
Senator McALLISTER (New South Wales—Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme) (18:17): I move: That this bill be now read a second time. I seek leave to have the second reading speech incorporated in Hansard. Leave granted.
The speech read as follows— AVIATION CONSUMER PROTECTION BILL 2026 INTRODUCTION Aviation is a national connecter. It binds our cities to our regions, our exports to the world, and our families to one another. Because of our vast continent and the distances we travel; Australians rely on aviation perhaps more than many other people around the globe.
That is why it is so critical that the aviation sector builds and maintains the trust of Australian travellers. Until now, consumers have relied on airlines handling escalated complaints themselves through voluntary industry arrangements. This has not worked and consumers have often been left disappointed with the outcomes.
While airline performance has generally improved since the COVID-19 pandemic, there is still a need to offer greater protection for Australian travellers, including fair and appropriate treatment by airlines and airports when things go wrong. EVENTS IN THE MIDDLE EAST The events over the last month have also 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 have seen passengers who are unsure of what to do next, and what recourse is available to them if their flights are cancelled or delayed. Our airlines have been working under difficult circumstances and the government is incredibly grateful for the work they have done to ensure the Australians in the Middle East have been able to fly home safely.
But this current international crisis reminds us how important it is for Australian travellers to have increased protections when they fly and a clear understanding of what they are entitled to. That is why the Australian Government is bringing forward the Aviation Consumer Protection bill package, delivering our commitment to hold the aviation industry accountable for delivering better outcomes for consumers.
This Bill, the Aviation Consumer Protection Bill 2026 (the ACP Bill), which is being introduced together with the Aviation Consumer Protection Levy Bill (the Levy Bill), the Aviation Consumer Protection Levy (Collection) Bill (the Collection Bill), and the Aviation Consumer Protection (Consequential Amendments and Transitional Provisions) Bill (the Consequential Bill), represent the most significant reform any government has ever introduced for aviation consumer protection in this country.
Reforms that have been developed in close consultation with the public, with industry, and with experts to ensure we are delivering meaningful protections for passengers, while maintaining a competitive and sustainable aviation sector. While the Levy Bills enable the government to recover costs of operating the regulatory function through industry levies, we are mindful of the current burden on industry due to the conflict in the Middle East and will make appropriate decisions in that regard.
THE WHITE PAPER In 2024, the government released the Aviation White Paper: Towards 2050, a series of 56 policies setting the direction for the aviation industry to give passengers a better deal and enhance competition, while ensuring the industry maintains Australia's strong safety record. The White Paper acknowledged that the industry-led Airline Customer Advocate (ACA) had not delivered an effective complaint resolution service, and that it was now necessary for the government to establish a more effective body.
This assessment has been supported by feedback from consumers, consumer advocacy groups and consumer and fair-trading regulators, who have told us that in recent years the domestic airline industry has demonstrated poor customer service, decreasing service quality, and that the ACA is ineffective at resolving disputes. An independent review into airline and airport complaint handling processes advised the government that airlines and airports have work to do to lift their complaint handling standards, and that existing consumer pathways to escalate complaints are unclear, confusing and vary in their effectiveness.
Data from the government's Bureau of Infrastructure and Transport Research Economics (BITRE) shows that issues with on-time performance are substantial. In December last year, on average, over a quarter of domestic flights reported were delayed on arrival and were delayed on departure. While airline performance, including on-time performance has improved since the COVID-19 pandemic, there is still a broader need to better protect aviation consumers.
Research from the Behavioural Economics Team of the Australian Government (BETA) show more than 1 in 2 Australian adults travelled by air between August 2024 and August 2025, and 1 in 2 of those travellers experienced a flight disruption. Only a third of those travellers were satisfied with how those disruptions were handled. Australians with disabilities, medical conditions or injuries who accounted for 1 in 4 air passengers—report even lower levels of satisfaction.
A more coherent aviation consumer protection framework will be capable of both assisting consumers to resolve disputes and encouraging improved service standards across the aviation sector. THE BILL The Australian Consumer Protection Bill establishes the Aviation Consumer Protection Framework (the ACP Framework) which will comprise: an impartial Aviation Consumer Ombudsperson that will provide a fair, accessible and independent external dispute resolution service that can assist with resolving individual consumer complaints in relation to the supply of airline and airport services, and the Aviation Consumer Protections Charter (the Charter) that will set out the minimum standards that aviation consumers can expect from airlines and airports, which will be enforced by a regulator, the Aviation Consumer Protection Authority, or the ACPA.
An independent company, limited by guarantee, will operate the Aviation Consumer Ombudsperson scheme. This company, the ACO company, will be governed by a Board of Directors with equal representation from industry, consumers and an independent Chair. Regulated entities—airlines and airports—will be required to become members of the company.
One of the central functions of the ACO will be operating an aviation specific external dispute resolution service for consumer complaints about airlines and airports. If an airline or airport operator has acted inconsistently with the Charter and a consumer is not satisfied with the handling of their complaint, they will be able to seek assistance from the ACO.
The ACO will have several ways to help resolve the complaint such as through an investigation, compelling the provision of information, recommending a particular course of action, and/or facilitating a dispute resolution process. The ACO will be empowered to make a determination to require an airline or airport operator to resolve a consumer complaint in a particular way.
The ACPA will be established in the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts. It will enforce the Charter and be empowered to investigate systemic issues facing consumers in the aviation sector. The ACPA will also carry out enforcement activities related to the ACP Framework, including pursuing enforcement of ACO determinations on behalf of the Ombudsperson through judicial processes if necessary.
The Charter will create obligations for airlines and airports towards consumers in the event of a flight disruption, delay or cancellation. The Charter will also contain minimum standards in relation to booking information and assistance, communicating with consumers and complaint handling. To support greater public transparency and accountability, the Aviation Consumer Protections Bill will also facilitate the reporting and publication of reasons for flight delays, cancellations and disruptions to the department and consumers respectively.
This will assist the ACPA and ACO to determine whether or not a disruption, delay or cancellation was within or outside of the relevant entity's control. The ACO and ACPA will also have an advocacy role—ensuring consumer concerns are heard and actioned—by conducting inquiries, advising government and promoting best practice. The ACO and ACPA will provide consumer-focused education and best practice advice to consumers, the aviation industry, and the government on complaints handling.
The ACPA will lead advocacy in relation to any systemic consumer-facing issues identified in the sector, regulatory improvement, and public reporting. The Aircraft Noise Ombudsperson, responsible for independent reviews of Airservices Australia's and Defence's management of aircraft noise-related activities, will transition to the department. They will continue their current work, independent of Airservices Australia and Defence.
This is about ensuring the public has confidence in the Aircraft Noise Ombudsperson's findings and recommendations. This Bill will improve outcomes for consumers and ensure the aviation sector is accountable for the services they offer and is focussed on aviation consumers. AVIATION CONSUMER PROTECTION (CONSEQUENTIAL AMENDMENTS AND TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS) BILL 2026 The Aviation Consumer Protection (Consequential Amendments and Transitional Provisions) Bill provides clarity that a breach by an airline of a standard in the Aviation Consumer Protections Charter will not result in the cancellation of a licence under the Air Navigation Act 1920.
The Consequential Bill also ensures a smooth transition from the current non-legislated Aircraft Noise Ombudsperson (ANO) in Airservices Australia to the new independent, statutory ANO arrangements. AVIATION CONSUMER PROTECTION LEVY BILL 2026 The Aviation Consumer Protection Levy Bill forms a key part of a package of bills to hold the aviation industry accountable for delivering better outcomes for consumers and to deliver on our commitment to improve aviation consumer protection.
The Levy Bill allows the Minister to set levy amounts to impose and collect monies by enabling regulations to be made that will cost recover the administrative expenses associated with administration of the Aviation Consumer Protection Bill by the Aviation Consumer Protection Authority. The annual levy is based on the estimated costs of the regulatory functions of the regulator.
The Australian Government intends the annual general levy to offset the cost of administering the aviation consumer protections contained in the ACP Bill, while ensuring the levy is applied equitably. The Minister will be required to consider whether the levy payable by the regulated entity is a fair proportion of the total annual funds raised via the levy. AVIATION CONSUMER PROTECTION LEVY (COLLECTION) BILL 2026 The Aviation Consumer Protection Levy (Collection) Bill provides for the collection of levies to cost recover administration costs associated with the Aviation Consumer Protection Bill.
The cost recovery charges are intended to recover the costs of activities carried out by the Aviation Consumer Protection Authority (ACPA), which the ACP Bill establishes as a regulatory function within the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts (the department). The Collection Bill outlines the process for the collection of these charges, ensuring that the levies imposed on regulated entities are effectively managed and distributed.
It establishes the procedures for collecting and administering the cost recovery charges, in line with the framework set by the Levy Bill. Senator McALLISTER: I seek leave to continue my remarks later. Leave granted; debate adjourned.