Thursday, 30 November 2023
Bills
Justice Legislation Amendment (Police and Other Matters) Bill 2023
Bills
Justice Legislation Amendment (Police and Other Matters) Bill 2023
Second reading
Debate resumed.
Chris CREWTHER (Mornington) (15:04): In continuance, I fully support any measures that we can adopt to improve our countering violent extremism laws which identify and address the root causes and factors that lead to radicalisation, prevent individuals and groups from engaging in acts of terrorism, protect lives and communities and preserve our national security, particularly given what we have seen recently with our Jewish Australian community as well as with visitors who have been targeted. Indeed a Jewish friend of mine has said to me on this matter:
I’m of course concerned about the massive rise in antisemitism.
The indoctrination in schools … telling children to go to pro Hamas rallies & encourage hatred against Jews.
Just yesterday I joined the Israeli family and friends of victims murdered, harmed or taken hostage by Hamas who flew all the way to Australia to speak with us. It was so moving to hear their stories, and I call on and hope for the release of all remaining hostages held by Hamas. After spending time with the Israeli family and friends of victims murdered, harmed or taken hostage by Hamas yesterday, it was shocking, though, to see them blocked from entering their hotel last night by masked protesters and then having to be holed up for their own protection in a local police station for a few hours while the hotel was cleared. It was disgraceful to do this to these people who have already been through so much, and it brings to the fore the significance of this bill and protecting vulnerable individuals from violent extremists.
Again, it also brings to the fore the need for reinstated move-on laws, as we have debated in this chamber, and it brings to the fore the need for more police, but instead we have a police staffing crisis brought on by this government’s mismanagement and inaction, with many local police stations being forced to reduce reception hours and more, such as Mornington station going down from 24 to 16 hours from Sunday through to Wednesday and Hastings police station going down from 24 hours to 16 hours all week.
While the coalition have taken the position not to oppose this bill, I again call the government to take further action to protect our communities, particularly our local Jewish community, who are feeling particularly targeted at this moment.
Nick STAIKOS (Bentleigh) (15:07): I rise to make a contribution on the Justice Legislation Amendment (Police and Other Matters) Bill 2023. Before I get into it, I would like to address the contribution by the member for Malvern just before the lunchbreak. He started off okay, but then frankly it descended into a very partisan and militant speech where he accused this government of under-resourcing Victoria Police. I think those claims would have some credibility if you had forgotten about the fact that it was this government that invested $4.5 billion in more than 3600 additional police. Perhaps his claims would have credibility if you forgot about the fact that under this government Victoria Police is the largest police force in the country, and perhaps his claims would have more credibility if you forgot about the fact that when the member for Malvern was Treasurer of this state $100 million was ripped out of Victoria Police and not a single new police officer was funded by those opposite. I would appeal to those opposite –
Richard Riordan: On a point of order, Acting Speaker, on relevance, there is an important debate to be had today, not a critique and a sledging of former ministers of this place. I just draw the member back to it.
Nick STAIKOS: On the point of order, Acting Speaker, it is a ludicrous point of order because there are members of the house who have been talking about police resources and, frankly, spreading misinformation about this government’s proud record on police resourcing. The member for Mornington, who just proceeded this contribution, went to that exact matter.
The ACTING SPEAKER (Meng Heang Tak): I will rule on the point of order. There is no point of order.
Nick STAIKOS: Of course there is no point of order. These people are clowns. But I will get into –
Richard Riordan: On a point of order, Acting Speaker, it might be appropriate that that commentary be withdrawn. The member was being disrespectful to the opposition.
Nick STAIKOS: For the benefit of the house I withdraw that they are clowns.
This bill is very important legislation because it goes to integrity in Victoria Police. Victoria Police is one of our most important, one of our most trusted institutions in this state. It is not only about addressing crime. It is also about community safety; it is also about community harmony. Victoria Police play an important role in our state in maintaining the social cohesion of our state. As I pointed out earlier in this contribution, we have a very, very large police force in this state, and I would like to put on record my appreciation for Victoria Police, particularly those police members in the southern metropolitan division, most particularly in Glen Eira and Kingston, who I have the privilege of working closely with – all of our constables, our senior constables, our senior sergeants, our district inspectors and our superintendent. They are all top-class people who slog their guts out to make sure that our community is kept safe, day in, day out. Particularly in the City of Glen Eira, I know that our police members are working doubly hard to ensure that our community is kept safe during some difficult times.
But when we talk about a bill like this, which is about integrity, it is about the public having faith in Victoria Police, which is very, very important. This bill addresses that in a number of different ways – for example, codifying the Victoria Police code of conduct. This bill formally enshrines the Chief Commissioner of Police’s ability to issue a code of conduct to Victoria Police that is binding on Victoria Police personnel. It also allows for non-compliance of that code to be considered a breach of discipline that comes with explicit repercussions, and these changes are made to uphold the behavioural standards of Victoria Police.
In addition, this bill also allows discipline inquiry officers to request an independent medical assessment to determine an officer’s fitness, both physical and mental, to partake in disciplinary hearings, and this will ensure that adjournments are reserved for those who need it most and remove lengthy and costly delays. In addition to that, this bill also introduces a non-exhaustive list of conditions for good behaviour bonds, ensuring that officers who have breached discipline or committed an offence are aware of the expectations set by the bond. Notably this includes provisions for drug and alcohol testing.
This bill acknowledges that police and PSOs deal at times with very sensitive information. It acknowledges that fact and extends the statute of limitations for offences related to the misuse of police information from 12 months to three years. I understand that in many cases where misuse of sensitive information has occurred, it has not been uncovered until after 12 months, so this is very much an important reform to ensure that we are dealing with sensitive information appropriately.
This bill also makes some amendments to the Firearms Act 1996, and I would just say at the outset that the gun laws of this country are world renowned, and our gun safety culture is a point of national pride. Many of us have friends and family in the United States. I certainly have a number of friends in the United States, and one thing, as great as that country is, that many of us will never understand is their gun culture. Our gun safety laws are a point of national pride. They are something that unite our country, and we must always jealously guard the bipartisanship that we have when it comes to our gun safety laws.
Since the middle of 2021 a permanent national firearms amnesty has been in place, and that amnesty implores members of the public to anonymously surrender any illegal or unregistered firearms, parts or ammunition in their possession without fear of prosecution. This amendment to the Firearms Act actually improves the way in which that is conducted, because in support of that amnesty this bill allows a licensed firearms dealer to receive, accept or take possession of a firearm from an unlicensed person. The firearm can then be registered, destroyed or sold. This bill removes concerns that licensed firearms dealers may have with participating in the amnesty by formalising their ability to accept firearms from an unlicensed person. The bill goes further to place a special condition on the holder of the category A or A and B long arm firearm licence. Holders of such firearms cannot carry these or use a detachable magazine greater than five shots in combination with a bolt action shotgun, unless participating in a chief commissioner approved event.
Finally, in addition to these Firearms Act amendments, the bill increases Victoria Police’s ability to keep our roads and community safe by making amendments to vehicle immobilising devices such as tyre-deflating road spikes. Victoria Police currently has limited power to use VIDs and may only use them in situations where they are trying to prevent a driver from escaping custody or avoiding arrest and to stop a moving vehicle in limited circumstances. The bill allows for more situations in which a VID may be used. Police will now be able to use them if they think a driver may harm themselves, a police officer or someone else. This applies when someone is driving or tries to drive a car. Police officers will be required to take reasonable steps to inform a driver that the immobilising device has been deployed.
The final amendment as part of this bill: the bill makes amendments to the Terrorism (Community Protection) Act 2003 to provide a stronger response to risks of violent extremism that are currently being hindered by flow-of-information problems. It is a bill that makes a number of different amendments to different acts of Parliament. They are commonsense amendments, and they enhance and complement an existing integrity regime around Victorian Police but also our gun safety laws. I commend the bill to the house, and I wish it a speedy passage.
Jade BENHAM (Mildura) (15:16): I am more than happy to rise today to speak to the Justice Legislation Amendment (Police and Other Matters) Bill 2023. I am more than happy every time I get to support our Victoria Police members. I work very closely with them in all of our communities, and this is a good opportunity to tell some stories. We will get to that. As the member for Bentleigh just pointed out, there is a fair bit to this bill. It introduces a range of policing reforms which are aimed at strengthening the integrity of the Victoria Police discipline system and supporting VicPol and other agencies to help them maintain community safety – which they do each and every day. In the electorate of Mildura there are 13 single-man stations – the most of any electorate in Victoria – 13 of them, and some of them are really isolated. The people that are there, though, those Victoria Police members that man these single-man police stations, are the spine –
Katie Hall: And women.
Jade BENHAM: A couple of women – I am going to tell a story about Annie, who mans – or womans – the Culgoa –
A member: Staffs.
Jade BENHAM: Staffs. She is the member at Culgoa, which covers an incredible amount of area geographically. I will get to Annie very, very soon. But I did want to send a shout-out to all of those members – and the PSOs here of course who keep us safe each and every day – and those in the larger stations like Robinvale. Unfortunately in a town of 8000 people we do have a few on the roster but are still unable to staff the Robinvale police station 24 hours a day. There is a large catalogue of Victoria Police housing there too which needs maintenance, as they do, but it is hard to come by. Superintendent John O’Connor, local area commander Michelle Young and I work closely together. I get regular updates from them, and like I said, I am happy to support them in any way I can. So I am very, very happy to rise to speak on this today. But those single-staff police stations out in the bush – the people that staff them are the heart and soul, the spine, the stomach and everything out in these communities. Antoinette Coobs, better known as Annie, is the member at the Culgoa station. She is out and about all the time. I do not quite know how she does it. She seems to be able to be in several places at once. On Remembrance Day I was heading back from Charlton through Wycheproof and stopped off at the bakery, and Annie was there. Of course a quick hello that should have taken 2 minutes turned into about an hour – talking to Annie about all sorts of things around the district. She knows it like the back of her hand.
She is an incredible, incredible member of Victoria Police. I want to sincerely thank Annie Coobs for everything she does in Culgoa, Wycheproof, Charlton and Sea Lake. Like I said, she is everywhere – and that is a fair amount of country to cover, so thank you. She is also a very good netball umpire, which is how I got to know her in the first place, and a very, very good netballer too. I do not know if she still playing, but in her day she was very, very good.
Like I said, the community engagement from the larger station, with the resources to have members that are dedicated to community engagement, is vital. Lauren Harmer and Nick Raynor in Mildura are everywhere. I will quite often ask Lauren if she is following me around, because it seems like that sometimes. They do an incredible amount of work, particularly with some of the issues we have around antisocial behaviour, youth justice and youth crime at the moment. They are in the Langtree Mall, they are staging Coffee with a Cop, they are there; there is just a police presence in the places that they need to be. They are such a cohesive group. I even saw Loz on the breatho the other day. You know, people are off with sickness and other things, but they are flexible and they are team players, and I cannot thank our local Victoria Police members enough for all that they do. When I get up to talk about any bills in this place, there are usually stories that I can relate that do relate to my electorate. This is one of them, and I just want to support our Victoria Police members again.
A quick word on the Firearms Act 1996, which this bill will amend to allow licensed firearm dealers to receive, accept or take possession of a firearm from unlicensed persons who are not exempt from the Firearms Act for the purposes of sale and registration. The member for Bentleigh spoke before – and I have previously lived in the USA – about the lack of gun laws there. One thing that I think Australia is very, very proud of is our gun laws. Even coming from a rural property there was no argument. I remember the 1990s very well. I remember when John Howard brought those laws in – I am not too young to remember; I hold my age very well – very, very clearly. I was at school, and coming from a rural property, obviously firearms were part of life. From a young age my cousins that were boys were allowed to have a slug gun; I was not, probably for good reason. They were a part of life, but when Port Arthur occurred, there was not, from my memory, at least in our area, any pushback; it made sense. Having lived in the US, and with my husband about to travel to the US, the lack of gun laws in the US is frightening, so anything we can do to strengthen our gun laws I am absolutely happy to support.
I actually did my firearm safety course recently, because again, on a rural property you have to get a gun licence, you have to get a gun safe. I have not got my own firearm yet, but it has been on the Christmas list for a long time, so we will see. I am not going to hold my breath. But the delivery of the firearm safety course, the longarm for category A and B, is really thorough, and if you do not pass – it is one of those things. I have got lots of licences: boat licences, cars, forklifts, all that kind of thing. The firearms licensing in Victoria is so far – and I am happy to be corrected – the only test that I have taken where they actually make you take the test and you have to get 100 per cent and you only get two goes at it. If not, then you have to do the whole course again, and there are complementary practical courses. So like I said, it is well worth it. Gun safety is paramount everywhere in Victoria, particularly on rural properties, where we use them for game, pest control et cetera. I am happy to support anything that does strengthen our firearms legislation and any legislation that does support Victoria Police, as I have said. It will hopefully help them to keep us safe.
I was going to keep this brief – I say this every time, but I have not managed to keep it brief. Any legislation to support VicPol will hopefully help them keep us safe and keep my family and your family safe. I would like to finally take this opportunity to send my very best festive wishes to all of the VicPol members throughout my electorate and throughout Victoria more broadly, and to the PSOs too, and thank them for their service.
Tim RICHARDSON (Mordialloc) (15:25): Thank you, Acting Speaker Tak. Great to see you in the chair. It is great to speak and rise on the Justice Legislation Amendment (Police and Other Matters) Bill 2023. It is a really important bill around a range of matters, but particularly the focus on our disciplinary system and oversight of Victoria Police and the integrity and confidence that that provides to our local communities. It is important to reflect on this bill where Victoria Police is up to at the moment. It is a significantly changing, evolving environment, complex in its operations. We extend our gratitude to our serving police members. I had the opportunity with the Minister for Police to connect with Springvale police recently, and then previously with Cheltenham and Mordialloc police, and many of those members are locals serving our community each and every day. With the challenges that they face, particularly around recruitment and an ageing workforce as well, we extend our great gratitude and appreciation for the work that they do each and every day.
The member for Mildura made some points around single-person stations. We have had some changes in our area where we have capacity issues. Some of that is through attrition that we have seen, and some of the challenges that we have faced around the pandemic, and then staff recruitment. The academy is absolutely full each and every graduation – the minister has talked about that. We want to encourage more people in. It is a great way to serve your community and to give back, law enforcement, so we want to see more people come through. But it is challenging across our emergency services. I know in mental health and health infrastructure it is a challenge across the sector. But there is not a lack of effort or a lack of investment being made in Victoria Police. It is worth noting the Chief Commissioner of Police at the Public Accounts and Estimates Committee on single-officer stations said police:
… will be always stationed and gazetted to their single-officer police stations.
The police commissioner went on to say:
So the reality is, for us, no community is going to be any worse off, and we are not moving those members. I can give you that assurance.
It is important to place on the record the assurance to the community in that space. It is a challenging time at the moment, but each and every day our Victoria Police members are fronting up and supporting and serving their communities.
I had the opportunity to serve on the IBAC oversight committee, which really gave you an insight into the confidence of the community in policing, the complaints process, and for those serious allegations or conduct matters, the oversight that IBAC places in that space. It is worth reflecting that in the most recent calendar year, of the complaints that have been made to IBAC, some 68 per cent of all complaints received – or about 1900 – related to Victoria Police. There are also attitude surveys. I am comforted by the snapshot of Victoria Police perceptions around corruption, particularly that more than 95 per cent – almost all Victoria Police employees – agree that they know the behaviour that constitutes corruption, and a significant majority have a good understanding of what IBAC does and the oversight as well.
When we think about the oversight, the discipline and trust and confidence that is provided, there is the internal investigative frame, and a range of different legal centres and organisations have shared their views on the interaction between IBAC and Victoria Police. All in all, the serious corrupt conduct and issues that are referred to IBAC, where it needs that greater oversight, are done well with IBAC and resourced well. I remember being briefed that 40 per cent of the work that IBAC does is related to Victoria Police and that oversight, so we have a really important system. We have increased funding to those agencies as well. But then the disciplinary changes in the act and in the bill are important to again strengthen that trust and confidence for the more than 20,000 employees in Victoria Police that deliver policing services each and every day. Amazingly, it is around 14,000 interactions with members of the public each and every day.
With these amendments, I am particularly interested in and welcome the work that has been done around Victoria Police where there is a disciplinary matter or capacity discussions. Whether that is physical or mental health and wellbeing, that can be part of that process, one, to test capacity, but also two, to make sure that we are supporting and looking after Victoria Police members. I think that oversight is an important consideration as well. I am really heartened – this is a really important thing for trust and confidence in community. The bill in part of its amendments will also ensure that a breach of Victoria Police’s code of conduct is a breach of discipline. There is no grey area in that space. The trust and confidence that comes from a conduct issue is in that disciplinary frame. That is, importantly, lifting the standards and our understanding as well.
I also note that there is an extension to the statute of limitations from 12 months to three years. With the really privileged access to information that Victoria Police officers get, the fact that there is an extension of that time frame is really important to ensure that some of the delicate information that is received is treated with the greatest protection.
There are a couple of other important regulations that I want to go to in these amendments. There are amendments to the Road Safety Act 1986 around when vehicle-immobilising devices can be deployed. You breathe in when you think of the interactions Victoria Police have each and every day in dangerous parts of our community and on high-speed roads – interactions with motorists by our vehicle safety traffic teams that go out each and every day. We have seen harrowing consequences from accidents and through impacts from Victoria Police members that we have lost on our roads. For their safety and the safety of Victorians, when they front up each and every day and put themselves in harm’s way for the protection and betterment of their fellow Victorians, we will make sure they have every resource and can make every decision almost instantaneously, in the moment, especially when they have got high-speed traffic interceptions or risks to communities coming through. We need to make sure that there is every bit of power and support and protection there.
This change is through the presence of the reasonable suspicion requirement – lowering that standard so they can make decisions in the field to make sure that people are protected. Previously they could only employ those immobilising devices when they were trying to prevent a driver from escaping custody or avoiding arrest or in stopping a moving vehicle in limited circumstances. There will now be a presence of reasonable suspicion requirement, ensuring the right balance is struck between increasing community safety and the right of individuals. That is a practical, operational decision that requires a change to the Road Safety Act. Each and every day there are interactions with Victorians on the roads, and we have seen instances where police are put in a high degree of danger with tragic consequences. Victoria Police have the right to be safe in their workplace, out in our communities, while they are protecting Victorians each and every day.
The other really important thing is the amendment to the Terrorist (Community Protection) Act 2003. Victorians have been touched by the impact of terrorism. We have seen tragic loss of life in our communities and impact through the radicalisation of individuals. Our counterterrorism federal agencies, Victoria Police and their associated partners in the Department of Justice and Community Safety each and every day are privy to information that would be extremely confronting to Victorians. They protect us and have intercepted, we know, quite substantial risk and have diverted impacts at the MCG from proposed terrorist incidents and also from Anzac Day incidents, which thankfully Victorians were never impacted by. That information sharing of an understanding of how people radicalise and go towards extremism is so critical to community safety. It is the unseen critical work that they do. They can never talk about their work, but they are some of the best Victorians that you could ever meet. They are protecting and overseeing us each and every day to make sure we are safe, understanding the root causes of extremism and using those diversion programs and early intervention that are so critical in a community safety context – understanding how it comes to be and then dealing with and responding to those challenges. A lot of the time you see it through education, engagement and awareness through those deradicalisation programs. But we cannot let bureaucratic mistakes and a lack of sharing information risk the lives of Victorians. This is a practical measure that has come out of the countering violent extremism multi-agency panel. We thank them for the work that they do and the recommendations they have provided. This is a smart amendment that makes sure time-critical information is shared so we understand the root causes of radicalisation and provide early intervention. This is an important bill, and I commend it to the house.
Nicole WERNER (Warrandyte) (15:35): If the house will indulge me, I will first just pay tribute to our colleague, and now nearly former colleague, Matt Bach in the other place – he has just completed his valedictory speech, which was as brilliant as he has been a parliamentarian, and I thank him for his work in my region.
Today I rise to speak in support of the Justice Legislation Amendment (Police and Other Matters) Bill 2023. This extensive piece of legislation encompasses various facets of our legal system, primarily focusing on fortifying the integrity of the Victoria Police disciplinary system and safeguarding the welfare of our community.
Policing runs deep in my family. My father-in-law Lance Werner had a remarkable 38-year career as a member of the Victorian police. As a senior sergeant, Lance went beyond duty, taking on roles in emergency management training and serving as the Wangaratta inspector. He was a pioneer as one of the first family violence advisers, showcasing his commitment to critical societal issues. In various roles from constable to senior constable, Lance exhibited versatility in uniform duties, traffic management and criminal investigations. His contributions, though humble, were of significant public interest, leaving an indelible mark on the communities that he served. He even spent a bit of time doing training for my honourable friend the member for Benambra Mr Bill Tilley, who was one of the members that walked me in on my first day when I was sworn into Parliament only three short months ago. As Lance has entered a well-deserved retirement from the police force, I express my deep gratitude for his sacrifices, courage and unwavering commitment to the values of Victoria Police and to him. He is a symbol of service, integrity and resilience.
Our policing history goes back another generation to Lance’s father Vaughan Werner. Vaughan, at the age of about 35, took on a monumental responsibility as he led the Australian government team providing aid to the PNG police force for almost three years. In various roles he served as the assistant commissioner, serving under Chief Commissioner of Police Kel Glare. He served as the first superintendent of the drug squad and chief inspector overseeing the air wing, search and rescue and water police. His versatility and dedication left a lasting impact.
It is at this point that I would love to acknowledge also the Community Advocacy Alliance Inc, led by Kel Glare, who was granddad’s chief commissioner in his day. They are an organisation committed to providing benevolent support to those adversely affected by the government of the day, whether it be either side, its bureaucracies and agencies. It was established in 2015 after a mutual friend put former police chief commissioner Kel Glare AO APM and former police inspector Ivan Ray in touch again after many years on the premise that they had a lot in common and should have a chat. Their mission is rooted in the principles of justice, community safety and the protection of individual freedoms under the rule of law. It was my privilege and is my privilege to be involved with the CAA, as they are known colloquially, and I have visited the group and seen their advocacy, and I thank them for their work.
I also pay tribute to this distinguished figure Kel Glare, who served in the Victoria Police force for 35 years, retiring as chief commissioner. His commitment to law and order, coupled with his legal expertise, makes him a driving force behind the CAA’s mission. Kel is an active public speaker and community safety advocate alongside Ivan Ray, who is the CAA’s chief executive officer, executive secretary and co-founder. There are many more that I could mention, but for the sake of time I will leave it at that, and I do thank the CAA for all of their fantastic work.
It is my family’s proud history in policing that makes me so passionate about the changes being brought in today. The bill before us introduces significant changes to the Victoria Police Act 2013, incorporating the police code of conduct into legislation to underscore the importance of compliance for Victoria Police personnel. Additionally, the amendments address aspects such as medical assessments of fitness, conditions for breaches of discipline or offences and the establishment of a restorative engagement and redress scheme for current and former members of Victoria Police personnel. Unauthorised access, use and disclosure of police information are also addressed to safeguard sensitive data.
Importantly, this bill does not want to presuppose or put forth a suggestion that our Victorian police officers are not like my father-in-law and characters of the highest calibre that put themselves in harm’s way to make sure that we get to live our lives safely. This point was especially important in my recent meeting at Warrandyte police station, where I had the pleasure of meeting with Sergeant Stewart Henderson, station commander at Warrandyte police station, who has been on the job for 10 years now; Inspector Carlie Kohler, local area commander; and Acting Senior Sergeant Janine Saunders, the officer in charge at Doncaster Police.
Warrandyte police station and Doncaster police station have been making significant strides in community engagement, exemplified by their recent neighbourhood policing forum. This initiative reflects their commitment to fostering open communication channels between law enforcement and the communities they diligently serve. It was good to hear that they share my concerns about the dangerous five-ways intersection and the need to fix this. As my colleagues know, this has been a persistent issue compounded by a tragic fatal accident a couple of years ago. What is equally troubling to me are the near misses that continue to occur, prompting heightened attention from both the community and law enforcement agencies.
At our council in Manningham a recent community safety survey has highlighted the area’s outstanding safety record, ranking as the fourth-safest locality in Victoria and the second-safest in the Melbourne metropolitan area. However, the survey also underscores the prevalent concerns with scams within the community, an issue I know police are actively addressing. In fact in my electorate office I have recently started to stock the Little Black Book of Scams, which, despite its name, is not a how-to guide to scam people but is rather a book of how to avoid scams that I encourage my constituents to pick up at my electorate office at their leisure. The commitment of our police force to addressing these concerns head-on is commendable. Through ongoing forums and community surveys they are actively working towards creating safer environments and addressing the specific challenges faced by our neighbourhoods. So may I say a big thankyou from me to our local police officers who make Warrandyte and our electorate safe and secure. We thank you very much.
This bill proposes adjustments to the Child Employment Act 2003, specifically concerning exemptions from a working with children check. Notably, police custody officers will no longer be obligated to undergo a working with children check when engaged in child-related work, aligning their conditions with those of police and protective services officers. This modification aims to streamline worker screening requirements, ensuring uniformity among crucial frontline roles within Victoria Police. Although rare, it is a welcome change of pace to see a government amendment that seeks to streamline government rather than to convolute it.
The proposed changes to the Firearms Act 1996 permit licensed firearms dealers to receive firearms from unlicensed individuals for sale, registration or destruction. Furthermore, special conditions for longarm licences are introduced, including restrictions on the use of detachable magazines exceeding five shots in combination with a bolt action shotgun. It is crucial to note that these changes respond to emerging concerns despite the absence of concrete evidence or events justifying these adjustments.
In the domain of countering violent extremism, amendments to the Terrorism (Community Protection) Act 2003 focus on refining the procedures and operations of the Countering Violent Extremism Multi-agency Panel.
In conclusion, the Justice Legislation Amendment (Police and Other Matters) Bill 2023 represents a comprehensive effort to enhance efficiency, integrity and safety within Victoria’s legal framework. The proposed changes aim to address emerging issues, streamline processes and ensure the continued effectiveness of our law enforcement and judicial systems. Moving forward, it is imperative to engage in open and constructive dialogue to further refine these proposals and align them with the values and needs of our community.
Chris COUZENS (Geelong) (15:44): I am pleased to rise to contribute to the Justice Legislation Amendment (Police and Other Matters) Bill 2023. Can I start by thanking the Attorney-General for all of her work on this important bill. The safety of all Victorians is at the forefront of this bill, which will deliver a suite of reforms to ensure Victoria Police have what they need to keep our community safe. I also want to acknowledge and thank Victoria Police and our PSOs for everything they do to keep our community safe. They are not just about catching the bad guys, they also support our community in many ways, and I see that in my electorate of Geelong. The police work alongside family violence organisations to provide the best possible support to those impacted, and they do an extraordinary job. I have seen the work that they do, and my community is very appreciative of the work they do and how they tie in with organisations like the Orange Door. They attend tragic accidents and incidents, and I can only imagine what it must be like for them. They do it regularly, knocking on people’s doors to let loved ones know that there has been some sort of tragic accident where people have been seriously injured or in fact killed. I think they do an incredible job in that area.
During the summer months in the Geelong region obviously our population grows with tourism, and our police and first responders become very busy and have to deal with all sorts of circumstances that arise right throughout the Geelong area and our beautiful coast, so my hat goes off to them for the work that they do in not only managing large crowds but also keeping our community safe. Obviously police have great community engagement throughout our region. We often see them out and about. In fact only last week I was at a community event. We were sitting down having a meal at this event and there were a couple of young children sitting at the table while we were eating with two police officers. I was so impressed with the engagement that they had with those children, who had never really had any engagement with the police before – good or bad, thank goodness. The way that those police officers engaged with those children was incredible, and it was great to be able to sit there and listen to the conversation that was going on. That is a really important role of our police officers – to engage with our community, particularly children and young people. We have already heard in this place about the work that other members have seen their police officers doing throughout their electorates. Again, it is really important, that community engagement for our local police.
Of course one of the big ones is about keeping us safe on the roads. One life lost on our roads is way too many. It is our police officers that deliver that tragic news, as I said earlier, about death and injury. That is included in this bill, which is another really important piece. We need each driver to make the right choices, but for those who choose to do the wrong thing, we are providing the police with the tools and resources they need to hold those drivers accountable. Again, that is really important. I know in my electorate there have been many road blitzes going on, particularly around mobile phones. I have had conversations with the TAC and other stakeholders about what we need to do to address some of those serious issues. You know, there are way too many deaths on our roads at the moment. We are now relying on our police to utilise the resources that they have, and this bill actually extends those resources. This is really important work that they are doing.
The bill will introduce reforms to maintain community safety by increasing Victoria Police’s capacity to regulate firearms. I know the member for Bentleigh raised that issue earlier about the importance of firearm safety. We see what happens in other countries, particularly America. There is not much that I can say I liked about John Howard, but introducing the gun laws was probably one of the most significant things that he did in his time as Prime Minister, and I have every respect for that decision. I think it is really important. We need to make sure that our community is safe when it comes to guns, and our gun laws are really, really important and cannot be reduced in any shape or form. This bill addresses those as well. It is about making administrative enhancements to the operation of the countering violent extremism multi-agency panel and expanding the circumstances in which police officers are authorised to use vehicle immobilisation devices.
The bill also includes a range of reforms aimed at strengthening the integrity of the Victorian police discipline system and to ensure that Victoria Police personnel operate in a way that is consistent with community expectations. I have just talked about how fantastic our police force is, but there are always those one or two that do not do the right thing. As a member of Parliament I have had constituents come to me with complaints about a particular member of the police force. We need as a community to be confident that when we raise these issues, they are dealt with in the most appropriate way. As I said, 99.9 per cent of our police officers are out there doing the right thing – they are looking after our community, they are going after the bad guys, they are doing what we ask them to do and expect them to do – but every now and then there is an incident that should not happen. That can be a minor incident through to a fairly significant one, but we need to make sure there are processes in place to deal with them so that the community feel confident that they are being dealt with appropriately.
The bill will also enhance the privacy of participants of the restorative engagement and redress scheme for Victoria Police and make minor technical amendments to other Victorian legislation. It amends the Victoria Police Act 2013, Firearms Act 1996, Fire Rescue Victoria Act 1958, Terrorism (Community Protection) Act 2003, Road Safety Act 1986, Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 1998 and Worker Screening Act 2020.
This bill will enhance Victoria Police’s disciplinary system and support Victoria Police and other agencies to maintain community safety, with dangerous drivers to be targeted earlier and stronger safety controls placed on recreational firearms. As I mentioned earlier, the road safety issues are really prominent at the moment because of the increase in serious car accidents where we are seeing multiple deaths in one car accident. This is really concerning in my community, as I am sure it is right across the state. We need to ensure that our police have the resources and the power to do something about it to help deal with those people on the roads that should not be on the road that are doing the wrong thing. As I said earlier, many people do the right thing, but it only takes one person to be distracted, to do the wrong thing, to pick up their mobile or to be distracted by others in the vehicle to cause a major accident where people are killed or seriously injured or both, and we are seeing that happen on our roads at the moment.
As I mentioned, my community is really concerned about this. Many constituents have had conversations with me about how we begin to address this. I know the police and the TAC are working hard to address these issues to ensure that everyone is safe in our community and that when we get in our vehicle we can feel confident that everyone on the road is doing the right thing. This is a really important bill. It is a significant bill, and I commend the bill to the house.
Danny O’BRIEN (Gippsland South) (15:54): I am pleased to rise to say a few words on the Justice Legislation Amendment (Police and Other Matters) Bill 2023. I would not mind a dollar for every time I have risen to speak on a justice legislation amendment bill; there have been a few of them in my time. I endorse the comments of the member for Geelong and those before her. The member for Warrandyte and the member for Mordialloc I think also talked about the importance of this chamber supporting our police, and I absolutely do. This legislation is largely about police and police matters, and I particularly acknowledge the work of the police as we head into the holiday season, because they are among those frontline workers who, while the rest of us are putting our feet up and getting a well-earned break at the end of the year, are often the ones who are still on duty – indeed called to duty when all leave cancelled arrangements are in place. I say that particularly to my own family members. In one family in my wider family group there are currently five members of them in the police force. They do a great job, and I certainly thank them for the work they do.
Likewise I would like to acknowledge the work of the police in my electorate of Gippsland South. I will come to that a bit more in a moment, the work they do and the support that they need from the government. I acknowledge that it is a very thin blue line and they do a lot of great work in Gippsland broadly, in our small rural communities and in our larger regional towns. While I am there, I will give a little shout-out to Dale McCahon, a former sergeant at Leongatha who has just recently retired after 41 years in the force – retired from the force, I might add, but not from making a contribution to his community, which he is going on to do at Leongatha Secondary College, as I understand it. Dale was a great source of information and certainly a great community man in his time at Leongatha as well. So I wish him and his family all the best, and as I said, I wish to acknowledge the work of all the police officers as we head into the summer period.
This legislation enacts some aspects of the police discipline system and the code of conduct, and I certainly do not oppose that. I believe this was requested by the force itself. It did remind me of my time on the former IBAC committee two parliaments ago, when we looked at the issues of police discipline and police complaints given that, of the complaints made to police, only about 2 per cent ever end up with IBAC. I just want to mention it because there are still people now who will say that the system is broken and that police should not be investigating police. While I agree that should be the case for the most serious instances of police misconduct and corruption – absolutely that is a role for IBAC, and we on this side believe that IBAC should have both its powers and its resources strengthened to do more to root out corruption and misconduct in the police force – one of the things that we heard in the former IBAC committee as we collected evidence from around the state, around the country and indeed around the world was that police actually do need to investigate police on certain issues. At one extreme there is high-level corruption, at the other extreme there is the little old lady who says Constable So-and-so swore at me. Those sorts of things should not be going to an external body; they absolutely should be overseen by the superiors in the police station. Up to a level – and there is a fine line as to what that level should be – it is incumbent on police to manage their own in many respects, particularly on those more minor indiscretions. It is also incumbent that police have the understanding and the investigative powers and experience to actually investigate matters of corruption and matters of ill discipline and conduct by other police officers. Indeed many of the officers who work for IBAC uncovering the serious corruption will of course be former police officers. I just wanted to touch on that to ensure that we do not have an absolutist view of this situation.
I note there are a number of other aspects of this legislation, including changes to allow police to deploy vehicle-immobilising devices in a wider set of circumstances than is currently the case. Again that is something that I believe police have asked for, and I absolutely support that being used. Obviously there are difficult circumstances in which police would need to do that, given other traffic on the road, but it is certainly an issue that needs to be addressed. I know the issue of police pursuits is a vexed one, and a vexed one for the force and for governments all around the world, but I also know that there is frustration among serving and retired police officers at the current policies as they stand. Effectively, as soon as someone is being chased they know that if they put their foot down and make it a little bit dangerous, the police are going to back off. I think we probably need to look at how we better balance that, and perhaps this legislation, with the widened use of immobilising devices, is a good way of doing so.
There is another section in this bill with respect to firearms, and there are two aspects to it. One ensures that there is no issue with licensed firearm dealers accepting firearms that are being surrendered by people who may not have a licence as such. I guess it clarifies and gives some comfort to licensed firearm dealers. The second aspect of it relates to special conditions to be placed on the holders of category A or A and B long arm firearm licences, which includes my good self as a licensed firearm holder. I do not actually have any firearms, I quickly add, but I do have a licence so that I can, from time to time, borrow a rifle or a shotgun and bowl over a few of the rabbits that do appear around our place. But this special condition will state that a licensee cannot carry, possess or use a detachable magazine greater than five shots in combination with a bolt action shotgun unless it is for a purpose approved by the Chief Commissioner of Police. While I do not oppose that aspect of this legislation, I do hope that it has been sufficiently socialised with the law-abiding firearm community. It is sometimes a case of reform and regulatory creep when we talk about firearms regulation. I think this area is quite a narrow one, where I do not believe it will impact a lot of people. I note the second-reading speech indicates that this is proactive community safety reform, which is always good, but it also puts up a little flag for me, because I fear sometimes that the law-abiding firearm owners are the ones that can be impacted by this and it is actually the crooks that pay no attention to what we are doing in here and are breaking the law repeatedly. So I hope this does not have great impacts on our law-abiding firearm owners and hunters.
I might say too, with a couple of minutes to go and only an hour or so to go on the last day of sitting before we are back here in February, that I reiterate my support for duck season going ahead next year and for many years afterwards. This government needs to stand up to the radicals and make sure that it does not support the end of duck season. I think the new Premier has an opportunity to change the tone of what the government has been doing over the past few years with respect to the Greens, the Animal Justice Party and various others in the other place, and it needs to actually hold the line and allow Victorian men, women, children and families to go about a business that they have been doing for many decades and which, as the inquiry heard, has minimal impact on actual duck numbers. The scientists made it very clear that habitat, habitat, habitat is the crucial thing.
I know Field and Game in Victoria and my own local branch, Sale Field and Game, in particular do a magnificent job in supporting habitat and growing habitat. The Heart Morass wetlands in particular, just out of Sale, is one of the areas where they do a lot of great work to support wild aquatic bird habitat. We do not have any issue with this legislation, with the one exception that I raised – that concern about firearms. We do need to support our police. They are a very thin blue line, particularly in South Gippsland. I have called on the minister to do more, and I look forward to seeing this bill pass.
Meng Heang TAK (Clarinda) (16:04): I am delighted to rise today to speak on the Justice Legislation Amendment (Police and Other Matters) Bill 2023, another important piece of legislation that will introduce a range of reforms aimed at strengthening the integrity of the Victoria Police discipline system and to ensure that Victoria Police personnel operate in a way that is consistent with our community expectations. I commend the minister for bringing this bill forward, another justice-related amendment, of which we have seen many over the past sitting weeks – another bill aimed at improving the legislative framework to keep our community safe.
It was also fantastic to have the minister out to our area this month with a visit to Springvale police station. It is an amazing station, and I would like to thank Senior Sergeant Debra Lay as well as Inspector Peter Koger and Superintendent Damian Jackson for welcoming the minister as well as the member for Mordialloc and giving them a firsthand look at the important work that is happening at Springvale police station to keep our community safe. We are really lucky to have Springvale police station serving our community and we really do receive great service from the approximately 90 police personnel that make up the staff there. There are a host of challenges across the Clarinda electorate and the City of Greater Dandenong more broadly, and Springvale police station does an amazing job, so I would like to commend and thank them for their effort and dedication on that.
I am really proud to be part of a government that supports and invests in this important work. The government’s record investments of $4.5 billion are delivering 3637 new sworn police officers as well as a state-of-the-art intelligence system, new technology, new and upgraded police stations and stronger laws. We have benefited locally; since 2016, 225 additional police have been allocated to the Dandenong division, including 33 family violence specialist police, who are particularly welcome and important. Our record investment continues in the most recent budget with government announcements of another $600 million funding boost, which includes $342 million for an additional 502 police officers and 50 protective services officers, or PSOs. They have now all been recruited ahead of schedule this year and are due to be sworn in soon, which is fantastic. The recruitment of additional sworn members and PSOs will support Victoria Police to allocate more resources to areas of need and will help to further meet the growing needs of our state and build upon funding provided in 2016 and 2017. There is also some to great work happening locally in crime prevention in conjunction with some of our local community organisations, which I would like to touch on a little bit later. But we have seen clearly this government’s commitment to our police and community safety, and that continues here with this bill today.
As I mentioned, the bill will introduce a range of reforms aimed at strengthening the integrity of the Victoria Police discipline system and ensure that Victoria Police personnel operate in a way that is consistent with community expectations. This will be achieved through a host of amendments to the Victorian Police Act 2013, or VPA, including amendments to empower Victoria Police discipline inquiry officers to direct a police officer or protective services officer to undertake independent medical assessments if they are satisfied that the assessment is necessary to determine whether the officer is physically and mentally fit to participate in a disciplinary inquiry. Further, there are amendments to expressly provide that a breach of the Victoria Police code of conduct is a breach of discipline, and there are amendments to the provision that relates to conditions that Victoria Police may attach to a good behaviour bond that applies to a police officer in a disciplinary context, including adding a non-exhaustive list of relevant conditions, including drug and alcohol testing for up to two years, confirming how non-compliance with the bond may be addressed. Lastly, there are also amendments to extend the statute of limitations for the offence of Victorian police personnel accessing, using or disclosing police information from 12 months to three years. So there are important changes to maintain and strengthen the integrity of the discipline system.
The bill also includes reforms to maintain community safety by increasing Victoria Police’s capacity to regulate firearms through some important changes to the Firearms Act 1996. There are some administrative enhancements to the operation of the countering violent extremism multi-agency panel. On this point I have spoken previously on the findings of the Expert Panel on Terrorism and Violent Extremism Prevention and Response Powers and the importance of creating pathways for early countering of violent extremism intervention, which is really, really important, as is the work that is happening through the department and in the community.
More broadly, we are continuing to do some great work in the south-east on community harmony, enhancing social cohesion and promoting community harmony through our community groups and the many multicultural organisations in Clarinda and particularly across the City of Greater Dandenong.
We all know that isolation is a big factor in potential extremism and the consequences of that, and this makes the opportunity to share one’s culture, beliefs and experience with others even more important. Through this opportunity we can develop a greater sense of trust and belonging among all Victorians, and in doing so we have also seen in Clarinda and across Victoria the minimising of social division, misunderstandings and isolation. Deputy Speaker, like your electorate, Clarinda is a great example of multicultural Victoria and I believe a success story of multicultural Victoria. I am proud to be part of a government that continues to celebrate our diversity and also the diversity in our force.
I would like to, with the remaining time, say that I am very proud to support this amendment here today and very proud to be part of the Allan Labor government, a government that continues to support and invest in our police and invest in crime prevention and other initiatives to improve community safety in our local community and across Victoria. On that note it is the festive season, so I wish everyone in my electorate, all the parliamentarians in this house and the other place and especially my electorate officers Peter, Joel, Nancy, Salazar, Declan and Angie for their dedication and service to our local community, and everyone, a festive and safe season ahead, and I commend the bill to the house.
Martin CAMERON (Morwell) (16:13): I rise today to talk about the Justice Legislation Amendment (Police and Other Matters) Bill 2023. As everyone else has said as the clock ticks down to the end of our sitting year, it is great to be able to stand in the chamber and talk on these amendments, which I note we are not opposing today.
First, I would like to thank the member for Berwick for his lead on this. There are a broad-ranging lot of amendments that are going through here, and I will speak on a couple of those as I go through. But like everybody, I think, to a person that is in the chamber, first and foremost I would love to thank Victoria Police for the work that they do and in particular all the police members in my local area of the Latrobe Valley, who do a sterling job – and I will talk about them shortly. I know that we do rely on them at this time of year with everybody exiting over Christmas once school and everything finishes, heading away for holidays and family time. We are the ones that get to go away, and a lot of our police force are called on to protect us, sometimes from our own silly decisions – if we are travelling along the road and we are on our phones.
We love to see the presence of physical police cars and the police force out on the roads and also out on our streets. In the Latrobe Valley at the moment we are pushing hard and have just completed a petition for more PSOs and police officers in the Latrobe Valley. I do wish to thank the PSOs we see here constantly walking around Parliament protecting us and making us feel safe, and I am hoping in the future that their presence on the streets of the Latrobe Valley – we do have them in Traralgon, but on the streets of Morwell and also Moe – will do the same, as our local residents feel a little bit safer seeing their presence on the street.
The purpose of the bill is to amend, as I work through it, the Child Employment Act 2003 in relation to exemptions from working with children checks and to amend the Fire Rescue Victoria Act 1958 to further provide for the allocation of certain property, rights, liberties and obligations of the Country Fire Authority to Fire Rescue Victoria. As we briefly touched on the fantastic work of our police officers, our CFA people are now coming on line, and we are hoping that they do have a quiet Christmas and new year with the fire season. We do wish them all well and hope that they are safe. Also to the FRV officers that are now in our rural towns that are looking after the community, we just wish them well and thank them for all their hard work.
Also the amendments go to amending: the Firearms Act 1996 in relation to the surrender of firearms to licensed firearm dealers and special conditions for long arm licences; the Road Safety Act 1986 to further provide for the use of vehicle immobilising devices; and the Terrorism (Community Protection) Act 2003 to further provide for the procedures and operations of the Countering Violent Extremism Multi-Agency Panel and for the powers of the courts and the secretary’s delegates in relation to support and engagement orders. You can see we do have a wide-reaching lot of amendments that are coming through here that we are talking about today. It is great that we can actually talk about these important bills in the chamber. As the member for Gippsland South said, the amount of times that he has been able to stand up and talk about justice legislation amendments to make the community safer – it is part of our job to do that and debate it. Sometimes we are debating and opposing each other, but it is also fantastic when we can stand in the chamber and make sure the amendments can move through to do what we want to do, and that is to keep our community safe.
The bill amends the Victoria Police Act 2013 in relation to the code of conduct for members of Victoria Police personnel; medical assessments of fitness to participate in inquiries relating to an alleged breach of discipline; and conditions that may be imposed on a police officer or protective services officer for a breach of discipline or an offence punishable by imprisonment. As we said before, we all like to think our police are always doing the right thing, but as we have learned over the journey, sometimes that is not the case. We need to make sure that the proper procedures are in place so if anything untoward happens, the law can actually come down in the right and correct manner. Changing some of these laws makes that a little bit easier also. The bill also makes amendments to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 1998 in relation to federal subject matter and to the Worker Screening Act 2020 in relation to, as I said before, exemptions from a working with children check, and it makes other minor and technical amendments to those acts.
As we work through here – as I said before, touching back on the police, they do an outstanding job in my electorate of Latrobe Valley, and I do have a great relationship with the hierarchy and also the police in the townships of Traralgon, Morwell, Moe and Churchill. Our Churchill community sometimes get a little bit upset with the amount of time that their wonderful police officers have to spend going out to help the local officers in Traralgon, Morwell and Moe, sometimes appearing to leave the Churchill police station undermanned. We are, with our petition, asking for more police officers to come to the Latrobe Valley to stock up the main towns, and then our wonderful police force that are in Churchill can stay in Churchill and actually look after it. It is not only having the police force doing their job – they are also embedded in our community. We only have to see them at sporting events – they are always there, walking around and making sure everyone is great. There are some elderly people that come through my office, who are always on for a chat. Just the presence of having our police officers on the streets makes the elder members of the community in the Latrobe Valley feel safe.
Like everywhere, we do have our issues at the moment with youth crime. We know that the police are doing all they can within the rules and regulations that they have to adhere to. At the moment we have also got an uptake in cars being stolen around the townships of Traralgon, Morwell and Moe. Unfortunately, being a tradie, people are breaking into tradies’ utes and stealing all of their tools. That is ramping up. I am not sure if this is the time of the year that that does happen, but there has been a marked uptake in cars being stolen around the community. I think that is pretty broad and general right across Victoria. We really want to make sure that our police officers are well and truly able to attend. With our regulations of having X amount of police and that they have got to have their rest, one of the things that is concerning us down there is that the time that the Moe police station will be open for people to attend is going from 24 hours down to 16 hours. We hope that that is only a short-term fix until we can get the new officers that are going through the police academy at the moment to come through, but that is a concern for residents of Moe. As I said before, we are not opposing the bill.
In my last 20 seconds, as other members have done, I would just like to wish everybody a safe and happy break as they go home and spend time with their families. Stay safe. It has been an education for me, the last 12 months, being a newbie in the Parliament. Thank you, everybody, and stay safe.
Steve McGHIE (Melton) (16:23): I rise to contribute to the Justice Legislation Amendment (Police and Other Matters) Bill 2023, and I want to thank all of the previous contributors to this bill for their input. Firstly, I want to acknowledge our Victoria Police members right across the state for the fantastic work that they do in keeping us safe. It is hard work, and they do an amazing job. In particular, out in my area of Melton we have got a great police workforce out there, led by Lisa Prentice-Evans. I have had a lot to do with the local police out there, dealing with a lot of the community issues, and I cannot thank them enough. I hope it is a quiet Christmas period for them. It is not likely to be, but let us hope and keep our fingers crossed that it is. Also, here in the parliamentary precinct, there are the PSOs and the wonderful work they do in keeping us safe around the precinct – the PSOs right across the system, but in particular here, keeping us safe. That is fantastic, and again, I wish them all very well for the festive season.
This legislation had wide consultation prior to being put to the house. I should just rattle off the different stakeholders that were involved in the consultation process. Of course that was Victoria Police, TPAV – the Police Association Victoria – the Police Registration and Services Board, IBAC, the Victorian Firearms Consultative Committee, Fire Rescue Victoria, the Country Fire Authority, VCAT, the Aboriginal Justice Caucus, the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria, Victoria Legal Aid and the Commission for Children and Young People. This bill is very important, and of course it was important to consult widely. Just rattling off those agencies there just goes to show what work was put in place to formulate this bill and to put it before the house.
This legislation is designed and targeted to bring in a new era of integrity, community alignment and safety within Victoria Police. We know that there have been some moments in past years in regard to some things that have happened within VicPol. They are obviously going through cultural change, and this bill will assist with that. It is a comprehensive bill that covers off a series of reforms detailed to fortify the very fabric of the discipline system, ensuring that the conduct of Victoria Police personnel is in line with the expectations that we have right across our community.
The bill also extends beyond discipline, reaching into the realm of community safety by bolstering Victoria Police’s ability to regulate firearms. It contains administrative enhancements to the operation of the countering violent extremism multi-agency panel and is set to amplify our collective efforts in safeguarding our communities against evolving threats. We know that there are always some extremists out there that want to threaten our communities and individuals.
The bill broadens the circumstances under which police officers are authorised to employ vehicle immobilising devices, and that is a critical measure to keep the public safe. We have seen recent driving events where the police have had to use those road spikes, and this will just broaden the opportunity for them to use the road spikes.
A crucial aspect of this bill is its commitment to privacy, which is particularly clear in the provisions dedicated to elevating the privacy of participants in the Victoria Police restorative engagement and redress scheme. It underscores our dedication to creating a system that not only addresses grievances but does so with the utmost respect for the individuals involved.
Of course there are technical alterations; the bill also incorporates minor technical amendments to various pieces of Victorian legislation, further refining the legal framework within which we run. As we delve deeper into the details of this transformative bill, let us collectively recognise its profound impact on the principles of justice, safety and community trust. Together we embark on a journey towards a more accountable, secure and harmonious Victoria, and that starts with our police force.
The legislation currently under consideration in the house brings forth a series of transformative measures in the realm of policing, with the overarching goal of fortifying the integrity of the Victoria Police discipline system and aiding both Victoria Police and allied agencies in upholding community safety. The proposed legislation introduces amendments to the Victoria Police Act 2013 with the primary aim of enhancing the discipline system. In 2022 there was a notable uptick in disciplinary hearings involving police officers and protective services officers facing charges related to breaches of discipline under the police act or criminal offences. Again, all industries have some people that do not toe the line, and we have got to admit that, but in VicPol they have had some incidents where some of their members have not complied with things that you would expect they would comply with and unfortunately have faced some disciplinary processes. This will strengthen and bolster up those processes to deal with them. As I say, the majority of VicPol officers exemplify their values and the standards expected by the rest of us in the community. Of course it is imperative that we establish a robust discipline system that keeps the members accountable and keeps and maintains an appropriate standard that the community would expect. So I am pleased that this bill will bolster that up. There is reference to the Victoria Police code of conduct, and that is to be used as a benchmark. We all know that in the past some people have breached that, so that is an important issue.
In cases of disciplinary inquiries a police officer or PSO has the choice to seek a postponement to those inquiries based on medical grounds. Of course they would be required to provide medical evidence of that to postpone any actions or investigation against them, and that would have to be dealt with by a qualified medical officer. The assessment at times will specifically evaluate their physical and mental health and whether they can proceed through the inquiry based on their health and welfare, and it will make sure that they are capable both from a mental point of view and a physical point of view of proceeding through the investigation process. There is also the introduction of good behaviour bonds in cases of disciplinary breaches and indeed for some criminal offences, and there is a situation where some additional conditions can be placed on the person under investigation, if there are findings against them, where there can be some additional things that the police force may wish to add to any outcome in regard to an investigation.
This bill is an important bill for the state to bolster up and improve, as I said earlier, the culture within VicPol, and as I say, it is only a minority of people within VicPol that have caused any problems and had any problems. I am pleased to say that the majority of our police officers are fantastic people that protect us right across the community. Again, as I say, just as a reminder, it is really about cultural change, and that is what it assists with to meet our community standards.
Just with the minute that I have got to go, again I am going to come back to the importance of police work and what they do and the pressures they are put under. Sometimes they become a target of some people within our community, which is totally inappropriate. I cannot understand why people would do that. I extend my thanks and support to all our VicPol members and our PSOs again. I want to take this opportunity to make sure that not only the police and the PSOs but everyone in this chamber and this Parliament and their families have a great festive season and hopefully have a nice break away with their family, come back nice and refreshed next year so we can get back into it and battle on again. I commend this bill to the house.
That debate be now adjourned.
Motion agreed to and debate adjourned.
Ordered that debate be adjourned until later this day.