NEW AUSSIE BODY TO REGULATE MIGRATION AGENTS

MELBOURNE, Feb 10 (Bernama) -- Australia's Immigration and Citizenship
Minister Chris Evans on Monday announced the establishment of a new body to
regulate migration agents after a review found dissatisfaction among consumers
and potential conflicts of interest under the current arrangements.

He said that from July 1, the new Office of Migration Agents Registration
Authority (MARA) would undertake the regulatory functions which had been
operated under statutory self-regulation by the Migration Institute of Australia
(MIA) since 1998.

"The current arrangement has the industry association managing the
regulatory function of its own members -- which includes the handling of
complaints -- and this has caused serious concerns among consumers and
stakeholders," he said in a statement.

The 2007-08 Review of Statutory Self-Regulation of the Migration Advice
Profession, which was undertaken to assess the effectiveness of the regulatory
scheme, recommended that the government consider establishing a regulatory body
separate from the MIA to address the concerns.

"Unprofessional, incompetent or unethical behaviour by migration agents
affects the lives of consumers, challenges the integrity of Australia's visa
programme and brings the entire profession of more than 3700 migration agents
into disrepute," Evans said.

"The changes we are making will provide greater confidence to the consumers
of migration advice services and remove concerns about potential conflicts of
interest."

The new MARA will be supported by an advisory board, which will include a
nominee from the MIA, a nominee from the Law Council of Australia, a consumer
representative and a community representative.

The office will receive administrative support from the Department of
Immigration and Citizenship.

Senator Evans said that the establishment of the new body is the first step
in the implementation of a range of recommendations made in the review.
-- BERNAMA