I appreciate the responses and again i want to be clear, im not saying for a certainty that they are toothless, im merely asking since, as a non aussie, i have no clue.
Let me add this: when a congressional committee makes recomendations in the USA, they are just that: recomendations. They are not binding and carry no weight. The weight comes from the fact that those who held the committee meeting are part of the body that makes laws and thus can speak up when the time comes to legislate. Thus when i hear these terms being used it conjures images of a lot of talk with potentially little action. Honestly the responses dont seem more hopeful than factual with regard to potential outcome here