On 16 June, the federal Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) released their notice of intention to conduct the assessment as a Biosecurity Import Risk Analysis.
This starts a 30-month timeframe to finalise the BIRA, though the clock may be paused in specific circumstances.
A timeline of the broader banana imports issue, which began in 1995, can be found here.
The government’s SAG (Scientific Advisory Group) may be engaged at any point in the process to review and provide comments on any aspect of the BIRA.
A standard import risk analysis process involves the following steps:
- Receive an import market access request.
- Prioritise the import market access request.
- Announce the commencement of the import risk analysis and notify stakeholders.
- Publish an issues paper for public comment. This step is optional, and depends on the good being considered.
- Prepare a draft report after assessing the level of biosecurity risk and developing any proposed risk management measures.
- Publish the draft report for public consultation, which is generally for 60-calendar days. Stakeholders are notified and encouraged to provide feedback on the draft report. We meet with stakeholders in person and/or online during the consultation period, as required.
- Consider all comments received and prepare the final report.
- Publish the final report and notify stakeholders.
It may take anywhere from 18 months to 3 years to complete a standard risk analysis, depending on its complexity.
A Biosecurity Import Risk Analysis process brings in additional requirements inlcuding:
- appointment of the Scientific Advisory Group to examine and provide comment on any aspect of the BIRA
- issuing a notice of intention to conduct a BIRA
- publishing an issues paper before releasing a draft report
- publishing a provisional report before releasing the final report
- an option for stakeholders to request the Inspector-General of Biosecurity (IGB) to review the process for conducting the analysis.
These steps are prescribed under the Biosecurity Act 2015 and the Biosecurity Regulations 2016.
Establishment of expert advisory group (EAG)
DAFF will establish an additional group of experts in banana pests and diseases, production practices and pest management systems to provide independent, expert advice on this assessment.
They state that this is in recognition of the fact that specific, expert advice may be required for this assessment.