INQ112

That Department of Primary Industries (DPI), in partnership with the Department of Sustainability and Environment, reviews all legislation relating to plant biosecurity with a view to streamlining the legislative framework.

That DPI maintains ISO 9000 accreditation for at least one laboratory and seeks NATA accreditation for key diagnostic tests. This should be done in combination with Plant Health Australia’s laboratory accreditation project.

That DPI negotiates access, as and when required, to an AQIS PC4- accredited laboratory.

That DPI develops diagnostic protocols for high-priority threats, in conjunction with other jurisdictions and industry, as soon as practicable.

That DPI establishes a system to ensure the security of all samples at all times, but particularly during their handling and transport.

That DPI upgrades the Crop Health Services diagnostic database so that it alerts PSB and PIRVIC to the receipt of samples from nearby areas with similar symptoms and can be linked to other PIRVIC diagnostic databases.

That PSB and PIRVIC review their service agreement to ensure that PIRVIC is compensated for its costs in providing PSB with the specified level of service.

That DPI formalises agreements within the Regional Services and Agriculture Division to ensure that plant health information is included in extension programs.

That DPI develops a comprehensive strategy for communicating to industry their rights and responsibilities in relation to threats, incursions, outbreaks and post-outbreak; and also for communicating internally.

That DPI provides plant incursion-specific AIIMS training for anyone who might be involved in, or providing resources for, an incursion response. This includes senior management, field and research staff, contractors and industry participants.

That DPI ensures that AIIMS training includes information to ensure that everyone understands their role, and how information will be managed internally and externally, in the event of an incursion.

That DPI conducts and documents debriefs after all incursions, and adopts any improvements that are identified through debriefs.

That DPI formalises agreements between divisions and groups that allow staff to be involved in incursion responses and reflects this requirement in individual duty statements.

That the recommendations of the 2000 DPI report into the reference collection’s storage facility be implemented, to secure the collection in a purpose-built facility.

That better use be made of Primary Industries Research Victoria's (PIRVIC) facilities by strengthening links with relevant groups of expertise, such as the Forest Science Centre.

That DPI develops a department-wide enforcement policy and specific guidelines for Plant Standards Branch (PSB).

That PSB’s enforcement procedures are consistent with those of the rest of the department.

That the Agricultural and Veterinary Chemicals (Control of Use) Act 1992, Plant Health and Plant Products Act 1995 and Livestock Disease Control Act 1994 be registered with the Department of Justice’s PERIN system.

That DPI develops a consistent process to identify, assess and prioritise potential plant pest and disease threats, and aligns it with prioritisation processes used at the national level by Plant Health Australia.

That DPI, as part of the development of the Victorian plant biosecurity strategy, undertake a strategic review of its plant health planning framework so that: • corporate and business unit plans at all levels of the department align to each other and to government policy so that staff have a cohe

That DPI works with industry to develop a training module on the certification and verification system for inclusion in industry quality assurance programs.

That DPI develops a consistent approach to recording and enforcing breaches of the certification and verification system.

That DPI makes arrangements to use contract labour for fruit fly trap monitoring and surveillance before the predicted fruit fly outbreak season.

That DPI reviews the work of entry level graduates to ensure career paths are clear and encourage the retention of staff.

That DPI improves monitoring and surveillance of high priority threats and improves the quality of information provided to the Commonwealth.

That DPI effectively communicates to all sectors of the industry their responsibilities to report new threats, and how to report them.

That the model for state funding be reviewed to ensure that DPI can confidently build and maintain a core level of diagnostic expertise and research capability.

That DPI prepares guidelines, both internally and externally with Treasury, about funding arrangements for an outbreak.