Governance
Cocos (Keeling) Islands became on Australian Territory in 1955. The Cocos (Keeling) Islands Act 1955 administered by the Minister for Local Government Territories and Roads provides the legislative basis for the Territory's administrative, legislative and judicial systems.
An Administrator appointed by the Governor-General is the most senior Australian Government representative and is responsible for the law order and good governance of the Territory.
The Territories Law Reform Act 1992 amended the Cocos (Keeling) Islands Act 1995 to apply various Commonwealth Acts and the law of the State of Western Australia to the Territory. This introduced a contemporary body of Australian law and was a major step in extending to the residents of the Territory the same rights responsibilities and obligations as enjoyed by their fellow Australians.
In 1984 the Cocos (Keeling) Island community voted in favour of integration with Australia in an Act of Self Determination supervised by the United Nations.
At the time of the Act of Self Determination in 1984 the Australian Government gave a commitment to the people of Cocos (Keeling) Islands to respect their religious beliefs, traditions and culture.
Local Government legislation based on that of Western Australia was introduced in 1992. The first Shire Council was elected in 1993. The Shire Council is comprised of seven members and has similar responsibilities to a local government on the Australian mainland.
At the Federal level the Cocos (Keeling) Islands are an electoral district of the Commonwealth Division of Lingiari in the Northern Territory.
The Department of Transport and Regional Services (DOTARS) issues a range of information to the public in the form of Community Bulletins and Government Gazettes. These are sent to subscribers and may also be viewed online.
Australian Government Services
The provision of Australian Government services to Cocos (Keeling) Islands are the responsibility of each individual Australian Government agency within their portfolios eg. customs, quarantine, taxation etc. The Australian Government Department of Transport and Regional Services has overall responsibility for the Territories including the provision of State Government-type services.
State Government-type Services
State Government-type services are provided through:
- Service Delivery Arrangements (SDAs) between Australian Government and Western Australian State Government agencies;
- directly by the Department of Transport and Regional Services; and
- through contractual arrangements with other organisations.
SDAs in place
As at March 2007 the following State agencies provide services to the Commonwealth for Christmas Island and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands under Service Delivery Arrangements:
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Agency
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Services provided
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BreastScreen WA
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Screening and diagnostic mammography services
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Department of the Attorney-General
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Access to the justice system including:
- Court Services;
- Registry Office;
- State Solicitors Office; and
- Public Advocate.
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Department for Community Development
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Professional supervision and support for the Indian Ocean Territories (IOTs) Social Worker to promote responsibility and growth in family and community life and contribute to the protection and care of children.
Information and support to licensed and proposed childcare providers, and administration of the applied legislation concerning working with children.
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Department of Consumer and Employment Protection
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Information to business and consumers, and the development and enforcement of consumer protection legislation.
Information to employers and employees, and the development and enforcement of occupational safety and health legislation, including resources safety and the storage, transport and handling of dangerous goods.
Energy safety regulatory services.
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Department of Corrective Services
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Offender management services.
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Department of Culture and the Arts
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Broad policy and planning services, arts development services (including art funding administration), art gallery services, museums services, and cultural planning services.
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Disability Services Commission
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Support and services to people with disabilities in the IOTs.
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Department of Education and Training
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Monitoring and assessment of the compliance of IOTs vocational and adult education and training providers with legislative requirements. Registration and monitoring of IOTs apprentices and trainees.
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Office of Energy
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Advice on energy policy and regulatory matters in the IOTs.
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Department of the Environment and Conservation
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Protection and enhancement of the IOTs environment and water resources through the implementation of applied environmental protection law, including protection of water resources, regulation of prescribed premises, emissions and wastes, and incident protection and response.
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Equal Opportunity Commission
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Information and advice on equal opportunity and human rights issues and the investigation of complaints under the applied equal opportunity legislation.
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Economic Regulation Authority
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Promote economically efficient outcomes in the IOTs at the lowest practicable regulatory cost through efficient and effective independent regulation, independent advice to the Commonwealth and advancing the debate on economic regulation.
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Fire and Emergency Services Authority
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Support to volunteer brigades including planning, training, and equipment.
Community education on safety issues, and compliance with building safety requirements.
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Department of Fisheries
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Procedural and technical advice in relation to aquaculture proposals and management of fish resources.
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Department of Health
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Regulatory, advisory and other support services as required in the delivery of whole-of-health services.
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Office of Health Review
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Handling of complaints about the provision of health services in the IOTs.
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Department of Housing and Works
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Advice and support to the Administration Housing Unit for the effective administration of social housing in the IOTs.
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Department of Industry and Resources
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Registration of IOTs mineral titles and advice on associated environmental matters.
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Department of Land Information
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Land information services, including registration of title, and geographic and cadastral information.
Impartial valuation services supporting asset management and revenue collection.
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Legal Aid Commission
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Quality legal services to those in need, and assistance to the community in accessing justice.
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Department of Local Government and Regional Development
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Ensuring compliance with applied local government legislation, and facilitating the development of local government for the elected body, and the communities.
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Main Roads WA
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Provision of road funding and traffic management in cooperation with local government.
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Medical Board of WA
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Monitors the conduct of doctors and the standards of medical treatment provided in the IOTs according to applied legislation.
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Nurses Board of WA
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Regulates the practice of nurses in accordance with applied legislation to ensure appropriate and safe standards of nursing care are promoted and maintained in the IOTs.
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Parliamentary Commissioner for Administrative Investigations (State Ombudsman)
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Provides a system for handling complaints about the administrative actions of State government agencies in the IOTs which are within the Commissioners jurisdiction.
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Department for Planning and Infrastructure
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Planning, legal and administrative advice to ensure the use and development of land in the IOTs is consistent with strategic planning, policy guidelines and planning standards.
Provision of advice and assistance to the Commonwealth on a broad range of transport issues.
Administration of Crown land in the IOTs.
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Public Trustee Office
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Trustee services, including the preparation of wills and provision of executor and administrator services for IOTs residents.
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Department of Racing, Gaming and Liquor
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Liquor licensing services, including compliance audits and investigations.
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Small Business Development Corporation
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Provision of specialised information, referral and business facilitation services, and representation of small business interests in WA policy development.
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Department of Sport and Recreation
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Provides advice on the sporting and recreational infrastructure needs in the IOTs, and support and advice to sporting and recreational groups in the IOTs.
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State Library of WA
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Provides IOTs local authorities and associated bodies with leadership, library materials, information and support services.
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Department of Treasury and Finance
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Collects and remits State-type revenue to the Commonwealth in accordance with applied legislation.
Provides purchasing, contracting and consulting solutions to the Commonwealth as required.
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Workcover
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Administers the applied workers compensation legislation for the benefit of injured workers.
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The WA Department of Education and Training also operates the Christmas Island District High School (CIDHS) and Cocos (Keeling) Islands District High School (CKIDHS) providing school based education for Kindergarten to Year 10 (Cocos) and Year 12 (Christmas) students under the WA curriculum.
DOTARS also has in place an arrangement with the Lotterywest for the assessment of IOT grant applications under the IOT State-type Grants Programme.
Other Services
The Department of Transport and Regional Services is also responsible for a range of other state-type services, including:
- electricity to the Island through the Indian Ocean Territories Power Authority (IOTPA);
- health services through the Indian Ocean Territories Health Service (IOTHS),
- policing by the Australian Federal Police (AFP);
- staff and public housing;
- water and wastewater services (under contract to Water Corporation);
- airport management (under contract to Forte Airport Management),
- port operations (under contract to Western Stevedores); and
- Motor Vehicle Registry (operated by the Shire of Christmas Island).
Education
The Australian Government contracts the provision of educational services on Cocos (Keeling) Islands to the Education Department of WA. The school:
- is small, modern and well-equipped with a developmental learning focus;
- is self-managing and reports to the District Director for audit purposes;
- enjoys a great deal of flexibility in decision making and employs a variety of innovative programs to cater for the diverse needs of its student population;
- currently has about 145 students enrolled from pre-primary to Year 10. About two thirds are primary students, up to year 6 and the remaining one third secondary students in years 7-10. Approximately three quarters of students have English as a second language while the remainder are expatriate mainland students;
- has two campuses; Home Island with approximately 60-plus students pre-primary to Year 6 and West Island with 80-plus students pre-primary to Year 10;
- considers early childhood education very important and operates both 4 year old and full time 5 year old programs on both campuses; and
- operates a vigorous bilingual program with tuition in Cocos Malay and English. English is the language of immersion and Indonesian is offered as part of the Languages Other Than English (LOTE) programme.
Health services
The Indian Ocean Territories Health Service (IOTHS) operates a clinic on both Home Island and West Island. A doctor, nurses, health workers, a community services officer and a dental assistant reside on the Cocos (Keeling) Islands.
Both clinics are open Monday to Friday. The doctor consults regularly on both Islands, however, it is necessary to make an appointment to see the doctor in all but emergency situations.
Like many other remote locations on the mainland, specialist services are not usually available on Cocos. Some specialists eg dentist, paediatrician, visit Cocos and/or Christmas Island on a regular basis. If a person needs medical attention which cannot be provided locally, appointments may be arranged for Cocos residents to travel to Christmas Island or Perth as required.
If an emergency is beyond the capacity of local resources the doctor may recommend evacuation to Perth.
Police
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) provide policing services on Cocos (Keeling) Islands. In addition to the normal police functions the AFP carry out other duties such as:
- immigration, quarantine and customs processing of aircraft, visiting ships and yachts; and
- co-ordination of emergency operations.
The importation of any firearms or ammunition to Cocos is prohibited without an approved permit.
Local Government services
The Shire of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands (SOCKI) is responsible for the provision of local government services to the Islands.
Community Consultation and Information Services
The Australian Government provides funding for the Shire of Cocos (Keeling) Islands to support community consultation and liaison in respect of services provided through WA state agencies.
The services include:
- distribution and translation of information for the Cocos community concerning State Government-type services;
- reporting of community views in relation to SDA;
- maintenance of information displays on government services including a list of WA State Government Agencies and functions delivered through SDA; and
- distribution of general information in relation to the provision of State level-type services.
The Shire of Cocos (Keeling) Islands contact is:
Mohammed Isa Minkom
Information Officer
Shire of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands
Ph: (08) 9162 6649
Fax: (08) 9162 6668
Email: m.i.m@shire.cc
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