McNamara on ‘The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: A Short History of Biosecurity Regulation in Australia’

Professor Noeleen McNamara of the University of Southern Queensland School of Law and Justice has published a book chapter titled 'The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: A Short History of Biosecurity Regulation in Australia'  The chapter appears in Sarah McKibbin, Jeremy Patrick and Marcus Harmes (eds), The Impact ofLaw’s History: What’s Past is Prologue (Springer, 2022).  Here is the abstract:

"Biosecurity is a major issue for Australia. There have been both successes in stopping the import of diseases and failures in allowing the import of destructive flora and fauna. This chapter will review the legislative history and policies surrounding some of these successes and failures to demonstrate best practice legislation going forward. By way of example, the threat of grape phylloxera, which led to the passing of the Phylloxera Act 1899 (SA), prohibited the import of cuttings from the old-world vineyards—at a time when many vineyards were being wiped out in Europe. Phylloxera was successful and coincidentally has resulted in Australia having the oldest shiraz vineyards in the world. This is not just an historical threat, with current legislation still targeting phylloxera and other vineyard diseases. The chapter will also discuss various historic failures, where a lack of knowledge of local circumstances led to the import of inappropriate “cures”. The cane toad example is well known. Another example is a native African plant, Glycine, which was introduced into Australia for cattle fodder. It is now regarded as an invasive weed, particularly in tropical and sub-tropical Australia. The chapter will address other flora and fauna examples which continue as major environmental problems today. A theme of the chapter is that an understanding of the historical policies surrounding the development of legislation is relevant today as they give us an understanding of what should be considered when developing biosecurity policy and legislation in the modern era."

Gray on 'Proportionality in Administrative Law and its Application to Victoria’s Proposed Pandemic Legislation'

 Professor Anthony Gray of the University of Southern Queensland School of Law and Justice has published a new article titled 'Proportionality in Administrative Law and its Application to Victoria's Proposed Pandemic Legislation'.  The article appears in Volume 29(1) of the Australian Journal of Administrative Law.  Here is the abstract:

"This article describes the use of proportionality in United Kingdom and Australian administrative law. There remains uncertainty regarding use of the doctrine, particularly in Australia. The article defends proportionality on the basis it reflects the rule of law. Its flexibility is an asset. Arguments against proportionality are considered weak. The use of proportionality reflects a culture of justification for the use of government power in a way that impacts an individual’s human rights, which reflects Australia’s liberal democracy. The article then considers application of proportionality principles to Victoria’s mooted pandemic laws. It finds that proportionality principles provide a more fertile ground for effective judicial review of the proposed extreme measures than 'Wednesbury' unreasonableness."

Copley on 'Land, the Social Imaginary, and the Constitution Act 1867 (Qld)'

 Mrs Julie Copley of the University of Southern Queensland School of Law and Justice has published a paper titled 'Land, the Social Imaginary, and the Constitution Act 1867 (Qld)'.  The paper appears as a chapter in Sarah McKibbin, Marcus Harmes, and Jeremy Patrick, eds., The Impact of Law's History: The Past is Prologue (Palgrave Macmillan, 2022).  Here is the abstract:

"Answers to property questions must be integrated into a state’s property institution. That institution is a product of the state’s legal and political arrangements. In law and in society, property questions are likely to be contested, dealing as they do with “property as things” and “property as wealth”. This chapter analyses, with reference to the real property institution established when the colony of Queensland was created in the mid-nineteenth century, legal and social (including political) theory of J.W. Harris, Charles Taylor, and Jeremy Waldron relevant to allocation of property as wealth. Early constitutional provision, enacted to give effect to the instrumental values of the “idea of order” in the new colony, is found to have continuing relevance. This finding demonstrates the importance of due appreciation of the historical evolution of a property institution if answers to property questions—in Queensland, generally in legislative form—are to allocate property as wealth on just and principled lines. It is argued that, as in Queensland, an appreciation of a state’s property institution—including the deeper normative notions and images of the common understandings of the state’s idea of order—is essential to amendment of legal and political arrangements."