Committee
Resumed from 27 June. The Deputy Chair of Committees (Hon Adele Farina) in the chair; Hon Sue Ellery (Leader of the House) in charge of the bill.
[Speeches and comments from various members]
Clause 9: Section 91 amended —
Hon ALISON XAMON: I rise to explain the nature of the amendment proposed on the notice paper, which I will move in a moment. As I mentioned in my contribution to the second reading debate, this new power that is being proposed to be given to the Corruption and Crime Commission is significant and, as such, I think it is important that Parliament is kept apprised of the full impact of the way this provision is being employed. What is currently in the legislation before us is that “a description of the Commission’s activities during that year in relation to its unexplained wealth functions” will be incorporated within an annual report. It does not spell out the level of detail that potentially should be reported to Parliament in that report. My proposed amendment attempts to prescribe the level of detail that would be given to Parliament so that Parliament can feel satisfied that it has more comprehensive information. Of course, the level of information being requested does not limit the capacity for additional information to also be provided. The intention is to ensure that we can be guaranteed that there will be a bare minimum of information to help satisfy Parliament that it is being given sufficient information about what is happening with this new regime. I move —
Page 6, line 5 — To delete “functions.” and insert —
functions including but not limited to:
(i) the number of cases in which the confiscable property was subject to a secured or unsecured debt;
(ii) in relation to each such debt:
(A) the particulars of the debt;
(B) the nature of the creditor;
(C) whether and if so how the debt was taken into account in the exercise of the Commission’s functions; and
(D) whether the creditor used the objection process under Part 6 of the Criminal Property Confiscation Act 2000 and if so the outcome of that process;
(iii) excluding creditors referred to in (i) above, the number of cases in which a person apart from the person the subject of the confiscation proceedings had or claimed to have a legal or equitable interest in the confiscable property;
(iv) in relation to each such interest:
(A) the particulars of the interest;
(B) whether and if so how the interest was taken into account in the exercise of the Commission’s functions; and
(C) whether the person used the objection process under Part6 of the Criminal Property Confiscation Act 2000 and if so the outcome of that process.
Hon SUE ELLERY: The government will not support this amendment. …………………
[Speeches and comments from various members]
Amendment put and negatived.
Clause put and passed.
[Speeches and comments from various members]
New clause 25A —
Hon ALISON XAMON: I have already spoken on this matter in my second reading contribution, so I do not feel that I need to go over it at length. To refresh the memories of members, I reiterate that the Greens continue to be concerned about the scope of this new provision, particularly because the criminal property confiscation laws, as they currently exist in this state, run the risk of being inherently unjust. As such, this provision seeks to ensure that, should the Corruption and Crime Commission use its extraordinary powers in these matters, it should be satisfied that the matter it is investigating is substantially connected with organised crime, rather than being waylaid by fairly minor matters in which the greatest injustices of the criminal property confiscation laws have been highlighted. People who grow marijuana in their own homes, for example, for their own purposes run the risk of potentially losing their homes. This motion attempts to limit the scope, so that the extraordinary powers of the CCC are focused on the crime that we would anticipate it should be used for—that is, to deal with substantive matters limited to organised crime, and not those matters that would otherwise be more appropriately dealt with by the police. I move —
Page 15, after line 4 — To insert —
25A. Section 5A inserted
After section 5 insert:
5A. Application of Act to CCC
Where this Act confers functions on the CCC, the exercise of those functions is subject to the CCC being satisfied that there are reasonable grounds for suspecting that the matter is substantially connected to organised crime as defined in the Corruption, Crime and Misconduct Act 2003 section 3.
[Speeches and comments from various members]
New clause put and negatived.
[Speeches and comments from various members]
Bill read a third time and returned to the Assembly with amendments.