Explanatory Memorandum
(Circulated by authority of the Minister for Youth and Sport, Senator the Hon Richard Colbeck)OUTLINE
The Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority Amendment (Sport Integrity Australia) Bill 2019 establishes Sport Integrity Australia to prevent and address threats to sports integrity and to coordinate a national approach to matters relating to sports integrity in Australia.
In August 2017, the then Minister for Sport requested a Review of Australia's Sports Integrity Arrangements (Wood Review), as part of the Australian Government's development of the National Sport Plan - Sport 2030. The report of the Wood Review was delivered to the Minister in March 2018 and published on 1 August 2018.
The Wood Review is the most comprehensive examination of sports integrity arrangements ever undertaken in Australia, if not the world. It found sports are challenged by a range of mounting integrity threats, which include the increasing sophistication and incidence of doping, the globalisation of sports wagering particularly through rapidly growing illegal online gambling markets, the infiltration and exploitation of the sports sector by organised crime, corruption in sports administration and growing participant protection issues - particularly the sexual abuse of minors in sporting environments.
At the heart of the Wood Review is a recommendation the government establish a National Sport Integrity Commission to cohesively draw together and develop existing sports integrity capabilities, knowledge and expertise. Sport Integrity Australia will fulfil this function by nationally coordinating all elements of the sports integrity threat response including, prevention, monitoring and detection, investigation and enforcement.
Sport Integrity Australia will implement Australia's international obligations both under the UNESCO International Convention against Doping in Sport and, once in force and binding on Australia, the Council of Europe Convention on the Manipulation of Sports Competitions (Macolin Convention). In order to do this, Sport Integrity Australia will bring together the functions of the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority, the National Integrity of Sport Unit, and the sports integrity functions of Sport Australia. Once established and operating, it is anticipated Sport Integrity Australia will expand to include enhanced match-fixing detection and suspicious wagering alert capabilities, a whistle-blower scheme, and promote national collaboration on sports wagering-related integrity frameworks.
Financial Impact Statement
No net cost to government. Sport Integrity Australia is supported by approximately $22m per annum from existing ongoing appropriations relating to Commonwealth sports integrity measures with an additional $7.7m in 2020-21 offset by residual savings from within the broader Health Portfolio 2018-19 MYEFO context.