Division 4A(1) This Division applies to:(a) fishing activities, and(b) aquaculture, and(c) other activities regulated by Part 7.(2) A reference in this Division to:(a) a fishing activity includes a reference to aquaculture or to any such other activity, and(b) a fishing authority includes a reference to an aquaculture permit or to a permit under Part 7 to carry out any such other activity.(3) This Division does not apply to any fishing activity carried out, or to any document produced, before the commencement of this Division.(4) This Division does not affect other provisions of this Act, which provide for:(a) conditions on fishing authorities, and(b) functions exercisable by fisheries officers for the purpose of auditing compliance with this Act and the regulations.
275B Nature of compliance audit
A compliance audit is a periodic or particular documented evaluation of the fishing activity to which a fishing authority relates for either or both of the following purposes:(a) to provide information to the persons carrying out or managing the fishing activity and to the persons administering this Act on compliance with legal requirements and relevant policies under this Act relating to the fishing activity,(b) to enable those persons to determine whether the way the activity is carried on can be improved in order to promote the objects of this Act.
275C Accreditation and regulation of compliance auditors
The regulations may make provision for or with respect to the following:(a) the accreditation of compliance auditors for the purposes of this Division,(b) the fees payable for accreditation and the trust funds under Part 8 into which they are to be paid,(c) the carrying out of compliance audits by compliance auditors.
275D Minister may require compliance audits by imposition of conditions on fishing authority
The Minister may, by the imposition of conditions on a fishing authority, require a compliance audit or audits to be undertaken to the satisfaction of the Minister by either or both of the following:(a) by the holder of the fishing authority,(b) by a compliance auditor.
275E Provisions relating to conditions for compliance audits
(1) A condition requiring a compliance audit may be imposed at the time the fishing authority is issued or renewed or at any other time by notice in writing to the holder of the fishing authority. Such a condition may be varied or revoked by a similar notice.(2) Such a condition must specify the purpose of the audit.(3) Such a condition may require:(a) appointment of a compliance auditor to undertake the audit (either periodically or on particular occasions), and(b) approval by the Minister or other person of the compliance auditor before being appointed, and(c) preparation of written documentation during the course of the audit, and(d) preparation of an audit report, and(e) production to the Minister of the audit report.(4) Such a condition may specify the format and level of detail required for the audit.
275F Certification of audit report
The audit report for a compliance audit is taken not to have been duly produced to the Minister unless it is accompanied by:(a) a declaration signed by the holder of the fishing authority certifying that the holder has not knowingly provided any false or misleading information to the compliance auditor and has provided all relevant information to the auditor, and(b) a declaration signed by the compliance auditor:(i) setting out the auditor’s qualifications, and(ii) certifying that the report is accurate, and that the auditor has not knowingly included any false or misleading information in it or failed to include any relevant information in it.
(1) False or misleading information to auditor
A person who provides information to a compliance auditor in connection with a compliance audit, knowing the information to be false or misleading in a material respect, is guilty of an offence.(2) Information not provided to auditor
The holder of a fishing authority who fails to provide information to a compliance auditor in connection with a compliance audit being carried out in relation to the fishing authority, knowing the information to be materially relevant to the audit, is guilty of an offence.(3) False or misleading information in audit report
A compliance auditor who includes information in an audit report produced to the Minister in connection with a compliance audit, knowing the information to be false or misleading in a material respect, is guilty of an offence.(4) Information not included in audit report
A compliance auditor who fails to provide information in an audit report produced to the Minister in connection with a compliance audit, knowing the information to be materially relevant to the audit, is guilty of an offence.(5) Retention of audit documentation
The holder of a fishing authority who:(a) fails to retain any written documentation required to be prepared by the holder in connection with a compliance audit for a period of at least 5 years after the audit report concerned was produced to the Minister (or such other period as is prescribed by the regulations), or(b) fails to produce during that period any such documentation to a fisheries officer on request,is guilty of an offence.Maximum penalty: In the case of a corporation, 2,000 penalty units or, in any other case, 1,000 penalty units.
275H Self-incriminatory information not exempt
Information must be supplied by a person in connection with a compliance audit, and this Division applies to any such information that is supplied, whether or not the information might incriminate the person.
(1) Any information in an audit report or other documentation supplied to the Minister in connection with a compliance audit may be taken into consideration by the Minister and used for the purposes of this Act.(2) Without limiting the above, any such information is admissible in evidence in any prosecution of the holder of a fishing authority for any offence (whether under this Act or otherwise).