Submissions received in response to the establishment of a National Occupational Licensing System (NOLS) are are now online for public viewing.
The COAG National Licensing Taskforce received a whopping 3,591 submissions on the Consultation Regulation Impact Statements (RISs) and Amending Legislation 2012 which were released last year.
There were 332 submissions received for the refrigeration and air conditioning consultation RIS, while 1,106 submissions were received covering the electrical occupations consultation RIS and 1,339 submissions for plumbing and gasfitting.
Only 12 submissions related to the legislation.
The introduction of a national licensing scheme for refrigeration and air-conditioning mechanics will benefit the Australian economy by more than $86 million per year, according to the Minister for Skills, Senator Chris Evans.
He said the reforms will boost labour mobility.
"National licensing means these workers will only need one licence to work anywhere in Australia - boosting productivity and labour mobility," he said.
NOLS was initially set to begin on July 1, 2012 but was postponed until mid-2013.
The 12 month delay is due to the complexity of the reforms with a draft legislative framework expected early this year.
For more information about the proposed reforms go to www.nola.gov.au.
A special report on the NOLS submissions will be published in the March edition of Climate Control News (CCN) magazine.
