Engineers Australia has renewed its push for a nationally consistent engineer registration scheme in NSW, hosting a cross-party roundtable at Parliament to advocate for standalone legislation.
The event drew participation from government, opposition and independent MPs, including Minister for Better Regulation and Fair Trading Anoulack Chanthivong and Shadow Minister for Building and Work Health and Safety Tim James.
Discussions focused on aligning NSW with engineering registration schemes already in place in Queensland, Victoria and Western Australia.
Engineers Australia CEO Romilly Madew AO warned that the lack of registration outside of the building sector exposes the state to public risk and economic inefficiencies.
“Simply anyone can claim to be an engineer on any project or work site (outside buildings) in NSW,” she said.
The forum identified fragmented regulatory settings as a brake on labour mobility and project delivery across borders.
A nationally consistent system – particularly one enabling Automatic Mutual Recognition (AMR) – was presented as essential infrastructure for Australia’s engineering workforce.
Bernadette Foley, Engineers Australia’s Group Executive for Professional Standards and Engineering Practice, said the proposed scheme would not require building from scratch.
“We know what the essential elements are,” she said.
Engineers Australia says it is ready to collaborate on a model that meets minimum national benchmarks.
The group’s proposal calls for a Professional Engineers Act that applies across all disciplines and sectors. It includes establishing a state-based regulator to oversee implementation and compliance.
The scheme would support Automatic Mutual Recognition to reduce red tape for interstate practitioners, and align practice and assessment standards with both national and international frameworks.
The roundtable also showcased international models of best practice and drew attention to the inefficiencies of NSW’s current fragmented regulatory landscape.
Industry participants pointed to duplicated administrative processes and inconsistent recognition as barriers to productivity, particularly on large infrastructure and multi-jurisdictional projects.
