Welcome to the Industry Update for December 2011 for Bicycle Industries Australia Ltd. (BIA) & Cycling Promotion Fund (CPF)
Bicycle Industries Australia Ltd. News
At
this time of year, I hope everyone gets the chance to relax and spend
time with their loved ones, and I wish everyone a safe and happy
Christmas and a prosperous 2012 for all in the bicycle industry.
Over the last 12 months, the BIA, with direction of the board has
re-engaged with the industry, identifying a number projects to build on
the support and services it offers to its members and the entire
industry.
Through the CPF, we have continued to deliver and
build national relationships and grow advocacy into the highest levels
of both government and non-government sectors.
With this
strong platform and support from the industry, we move into the coming
12 months with confidence that the BIA and CPF will achieve the
outcomes the industry needs.
Until next year,
Merry Christmas
Peter Bourke
Office Location
November
has seen a change of address for the BIA and CPF, moving into a joint
office with the Amy Gillett Foundation, Australian Cycling Events (CA
Events Team), Cycling Australian Business Unit, Grass Roots Initiatives
and Retail Cycle Traders of Australia.
New contact details are;
Suite 2, Ground Floor
616 St Kilda Rd
Melbourne VIC 3004
Ph: 03 9533 3170
Fax: 03 9533 3149
We are delighted to be sharing an office with several leading
national bike-related businesses who all enjoy a culture that strives
for bike riding (at any level) to become part of the way of life for all
Australians.
Productivity Commission Inquiry
The
recommendations of the Productivity Commission Inquiry into the State
of Australian Retail and Government response were released by the
Assistant treasurer Bill Shorten on Friday the 9th of December 2011.
The Government has acknowledged the inequity in the current Low
Value Import Threshold, but has recommended the formation of a
taskforce to identify efficiency improvements in the processing of
inward goods to ensure the cost of lowering the threshold would not
exceed the revenue to be raised. The taskforce has been given a
timeline of 6 months from its inception to hand down their findings,
which would be expected to be in third quarter of 2012.
With the new cabinet restructure, the carriage of this ongoing process
has been given Senator Mark Arbib and we will be following up with his
office on the future direction of retail in Australia (Minister Arbib
is a member of Riders on the Hill – CPF sponsored riding group).
As
highlighted in the July industry update, a reminder that on the 1st of
January 2012, the next stage of the Australian Consumer protection
laws will commence. One of the areas impacted directly through these
new laws will be the communication and delivery of warranties.
Standards Australia
at a meeting in November, agreed to bring together standards affecting
bicycles under the one committee. The current standards affected by
this decision are;
- AS/NZS 2063:2008 Bicycle helmets
- AS/NZS 1927:2010 Pedal bicycles - Safety requirements
- AS/NZS 4287:1995 Child carrier seats for pedal bicycles - Safety requirements
- AS 3562-1990 Lighting equipment for bicycles
- AS 2142-1978 Reflectors for pedal bicycles
- AS 2890.3-1993 Parking facilities - Bicycle parking facilities
- AS 1742.9-2000 Manual of uniform traffic control devices - Bicycle facilities
Bicycle lights are also subject to AS/NZS 60335.2.29:2004 Household
and similar electrical appliances - Safety - Particular requirements
for battery chargers (EL-002 Safety of Household and Similar Electrical
Appliances and Small Power Transformers)
The aim will be to improve the efficiency of the committee and improve communication will all key stakeholders.
Bicycle Import Data
Bicycle import figures are again expected to reach more than 1,000,000
units for the calendar year, the figure however is expected to be
almost 20% down from last 2010, and on a par with figures achieved in
2003.
Full details of the import data will be provided to all CPF and BIA members. Government Relations Manager Report
State of Australian Cities Report
The second ‘State of Australian Cities Report’ was released in
October. The CPF supported the release of this information and
distributed a media release emphasising the key message from the report
of ‘encouraging signs for liveability in our cities with a continuing
shift to short trips by bicycle, walking and public transport’.
‘Rail and the Sustainability Challenge’ – Australasian Railways Association conference
Further enhancing the relationship between the CPF and the railways
sector, the CPF participated in an expert panel with the theme
‘Promoting active transport initiatives’. The conference and panel
provided greater opportunities to explore stronger integration between
bicycle and rail travel.
As a result of the conference presentation, the CPF was interviewed by
the government relations journalist from the Australian Financial
Review that resulted in a very positive article appearing in the AFR on
11 November titled ‘Bike lobby on funding path’.
Climate Commission Health Report
The CPF was invited to contribute and provide input into the
independent Climate Commission report on Australian health. The report
titled ‘The Critical Decade: Climate Change and Health’ was released on
30 November.
Our key message was ‘the ability of the
bicycle to not only provide an accessible and practical means to get
around for short trips but also to have a positive health impact has
again been highlighted by the Climate Commission’s report’.
Final Word & Seasons Greetings
It has been another big year for us. But it is extremely satisfying to
see that the bicycle industry’s Cycling Promotion Fund now represents
the cause of bicycling in some of the most important forums within both
government and non-government arenas.
This work is made
possible by the investment from industry members and not only are we
aiming to be successful in our work with those external (and very
important) audiences, but I believe that with Peter’s commitment we are
starting to successfully tell the story to the industry as well. I
think we will be able to look back on 2011 as critical in our efforts
to achieve sustainability for the CPF and really have the capacity to
ramp up our efforts to grow investment in the industry and make
bicycling a main stream activity.
Part of the role of
communication with the industry belongs to the Board and members of the
CPF and I hope that you also believe in what we are doing and have the
information you need to get the word out there!!
It has
been a pleasure to serve the interests of the bicycle industry and
cycling overall as your Government Relations Manager over the last year
and see the enthusiasm of our new Board and supporters in the
industry.
Season’s greetings to all!
Stephen Hodge
National Transport Council Submission
The CPF joined with AGF and CA to respond to Review of the Australian Road Rules and Vehicle Standards Rules.
The discussion paper provided initial direction and responses to
this paper are expected to guide the development of an options paper to
be released in April.
The 10th Australian Bicycling Achievement Awards
The National Heart Foundation has come on again as the principal partner of the 10th Annual Australian Bicycling Achievement Awards.
The awards will be held at Old Parliament House on 21 March 2012 to
coincide with the final sitting week of the Autumn Parliamentary
session.
All industry members are invited to attend.
Australian Bicycle Dates
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