
A bill proposed in the Legislative Assembly of the Australian state of New South Wales is targeting the problem of metal theft by strictly regulating and scrutinizing the activities of scrap processors. The state of New South Wales includes the cities of Sydney and Newcastle.
The “Scrap Metal Industry Bill 2016,” sponsored by Assembly Members Troy Grant and Duncan Gay, states as its object to “regulate the scrap metal industry” in seven specific ways with the potential for future regulation also. Grant is a former police officer affiliated with the National Party of Australia. Gay also is a member of the National Party.
The regulatory measures the bill calls for include:
- requiring persons who carry on a business of dealing in scrap metal (scrap metal dealers) to register the business with the Commissioner of Police;
- prohibiting scrap metal dealers from paying cash for scrap metal;
- requiring scrap metal dealers to keep and maintain records of transactions for buying scrap metal, including details of the person selling the scrap metal;
- requiring scrap metal dealers to report suspicious transactions to the police;
- prohibiting scrap metal dealers from accepting a motor vehicle (or any motor vehicle body, engine or chassis) as scrap metal if it does not display its identification details;
- providing for short-term and long-term closure orders in respect of premises at which a scrap metal business is being carried on if the business is not registered under the proposed Act or serious criminal offences have been committed on the premises;
- authorising police officers without a warrant to enter premises at which a scrap metal business is being carried on to investigate contraventions of the proposed act and to search, take photographs and recordings and seize and copy records; and
- providing for other regulatory measures in respect of the scrap metal industry.”
A scrap processor who operates in the Sydney area says the bill has come about as a response to increases in vehicle theft. “Our industry had no warning [on the proposed law], but there has been a recent increase in new entrants in the industry mainly focusing on cars—namely buying, breaking (pulling out engines and nonferrous parts) and exporting the shells overseas. As these yards have grown, it has come to the attention of the various authorities, particularly with statistics showing an increase in the number of stolen cars. Also there is no requirement to be licensed to operate a scrap yard so the industry was in need of some form of regulation.”
He says eliminating cash will not be a problem with commercial customers, but will affect “the street trade.” Says the processor, “Electronic funds transfer payment has been an easy and acceptable overnight payment system for medium and large customers, however it has remained unpopular with the street trade.”
The scrap processor adds, “Some of the larger operators who have invested in ATM and cash dispensing systems may now have redundant equipment” if it doesn’t meet new standards. “Having said that,” he continues, “provided the authorities enforce the rules, then [going cashless] should be a benefit to the established operators.”
In a speech prepared to introduce the bill, Grant downplayed the burdens to scrap collectors. “I make it clear that the proposed legislation will not impact on anyone legitimately looking to offload scrap metal,” he stated. “For instance, people who enjoy scavenging on council clean-up days with a view to making a few dollars or who find it necessary to move a rusted car chassis—I have one in my backyard—can still do so in the normal way but will no longer be paid in cash and will need to prove their identity. That is not too onerous.”
He later represented the proposed switch away from cash payments as a benefit to processors, remarking, “More and more businesses are relying on [electronic and cheque] payments, so this is not considered onerous. It will also remove the need for scrap metal businesses to keep large volumes of cash on hand, which could also be a security risk for them.”
Grant also cited laws in the United Kingdom as having served as a model, commenting, “We also know that a similar scheme in place in the United Kingdom has already proven to be successful, with the number of metal theft incidents falling significantly in the scheme’s first year of operation.”
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