MOTOR VEHICLES (MISCELLANEOUS) AMENDMENT BILL

Introduction and First Reading

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING (Playford—Minister for Employment, Training and Further Education, Minister for Science and Information Economy, Minister for Road Safety, Minister for Veterans' Affairs) (15:42): Obtained leave and introduced a bill for an act to amend the Motor Vehicles Act 1959. Read a first time.

Second Reading

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING (Playford—Minister for Employment, Training and Further Education, Minister for Science and Information Economy, Minister for Road Safety, Minister for Veterans' Affairs) (15:43): I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

The bill contains a number of minor technical amendments to improve the operation of the Motor Vehicles Act 1959. Most of the amendments are related to the Motor Vehicles (Miscellaneous No. 2) Amendment Act 2009, which was passed by both houses of parliament on 1 December 2009. That act introduced enhancements to the Graduated Licensing Scheme and is scheduled to come into operation on 4 September 2010. I will refer to that act as the GLS Amendment Act. The amendments correct cross-referencing omissions and provide a regulation-making power for the high powered vehicle restriction scheme. The remaining amendment has been identified as necessary to implement the desired policy position regarding drug and alcohol dependency assessments. I seek leave to have the remainder of the second reading explanation inserted in Hansard without my reading it.

Leave granted.

Section 81AB—Probationary Licences

Section 81AB of the Motor Vehicles Act 1959 refers to situations when probationary licence conditions should be imposed upon a driver. The GLS Amendment Act clarified the circumstances in which probationary licence conditions should be placed upon a driver. The amendment entailed a significant reorganisation of section 81AB. This has resulted in a cross-referencing omission which has meant that a probationary licence holder who incurs a disqualification, and appeals the disqualification to the Magistrates Court, would not be subject to probationary licence conditions upon return to driving but would obtain a full licence.

This is contrary to current practice and to the intention of the legislation. An amendment rectifies this.

Section 98AAD—Licence or Learner's Permit falsely obtained is void

The GLS Amendment Act increased the penalty for the section 98AAE offences of unlawfully altering or damaging a licence or learner's permit and being in possession of a licence or learner's permit that has been unlawfully altered or damaged from $750 to $2,500.

The penalty for the similar offence in section 98AAD of being in possession of a licence or learner's permit that was issued or renewed on the basis of a false or misleading statement is $750. It is appropriate that the maximum penalty for these offences be consistent. It is therefore proposed to increase the maximum penalty to $2,500.

Section 139BD—Service and Commencement of Notices of Disqualification

Section 139BD outlines the process involved to serve notices of licence disqualification issued by the Registrar of Motor Vehicles under the Motor Vehicles Act. The proof of service process requires the driver to attend personally a Customer Service Centre or Australia Post office to acknowledge that the notice of disqualification has been served upon them. This process was established so that a driver who is detected driving whilst disqualified cannot allege they did not know they were disqualified because they did not receive the notice.

The Safer Driver Agreement is one of the enhancements in the GLS Amendment Act. It allows provisional drivers, upon disqualification, to either choose to serve their disqualification or alternatively, by entering into a Safer Driver Agreement, to obtain a provisional licence subject to additional specific conditions. If the Agreement is breached, the driver is liable to a period of disqualification equal to twice that of the original term.

A notice of disqualification for breaching a Safer Driver Agreement is not currently included in the notices of disqualification to which the proof of service process applies. This means that drivers receiving such notices of disqualification in the post would be able to argue non-receipt of the notice, which would be counterproductive to the enforcement of licence disqualifications. This is also contrary to the intention of the GLS Amendment Act and this Bill rectifies this omission.

Section 79B—Alcohol and drug dependency assessments and issue of licences

Section 79B requires an applicant for a licence, who has been convicted of, or expiated, multiple prescribed drug or alcohol offences to undergo a drug or alcohol dependency assessment before a licence is granted. If the assessment finds that a person is dependent on drugs, the Registrar of Motor Vehicles must refuse to issue a licence. If a person is found to be dependent on alcohol, the Registrar may grant a licence subject to alcohol interlock scheme conditions.

The circumstances in which the Registrar requires a licence applicant to undergo an assessment are based on the circumstances in section 47J of the Road Traffic Act 1961. Section 47J was the court based scheme for requiring dependency assessments of repeat drink drivers, and it has been superseded by the administrative scheme in section 79B, with the aim of relieving the courts from being involved with these matters.

Section 47J of the Road Traffic Act was triggered when a person was convicted of a prescribed offence and had previously been convicted of a prescribed offence committed within 3 years before the later offence. The 2 offences committed close together were considered to show a pattern of dependency sufficient to warrant a dependency assessment. This was also the intention of section 79B of the Motor Vehicles Act, but it is not currently reflected in section 79B where the trigger is the date of application for a licence rather than the date of committing the latest offence. This allows for potential abuse of this provision as an applicant can defer the date of application for a licence, thereby avoiding the requirement to undergo a dependency assessment. The Bill rectifies this situation.

In addition, the current circumstances in section 79B do not capture all the combinations of offences that section 47J captured and the Bill amends section 79B to ensure the range is the same.

Section 145—Regulation-making power

Lastly, a power to make regulations regarding exemptions from the high powered vehicle provisions has been included. This will allow regulations to be made that give the Registrar the power to cancel or require the surrender of a certificate of exemption and to create offences, for example obtaining a certificate on the basis of false information.

I commend the Bill to Members.

Explanation of Clauses

Part 1—Preliminary

1—Short title

This clause is formal.

2—Commencement

The measure will be brought into operation by proclamation.

3—Amendment provisions

This clause is formal.

Part 2—Amendment of Motor Vehicles Act 1959

4—Amendment of section 72A—Qualified supervising drivers

This clause corrects a cross-reference.

5—Amendment of section 79B—Alcohol and drug dependency assessments and issue of licences

Section 79B(1) requires the Registrar of Motor Vehicles to send an applicant for a driver's licence to an assessment clinic to determine if the applicant is dependent on alcohol if the applicant has expiated or been convicted of a certain number of drink driving offences in the 5 years preceding the date of the application.

This amendment requires the applicant to be sent to an assessment clinic if the applicant committed a specified number of drink driving offences in the 5 years preceding the commission of the most recent drink driving offence. The principal effect of the amendment is to ensure that an assessment is required if the applicant committed a required number of offences in the 5 years preceding the offence that led to the most recent loss of licence, rather than in the 5 years preceding the date on which the application for a new licence is made. The amendment also alters the weight to be given to certain levels of drink driving offences in determining whether or not an assessment is required, ensuring for example that medium level offences that are first offences are not to be treated as lower level offences for that purpose.

Section 79B(2) requires the Registrar to send an applicant for a licence to an assessment clinic to determine if the applicant is dependent on drugs if the applicant has expiated or been convicted of a certain number of drug driving offences in the 5 years preceding the date of the application.

This amendment requires the applicant to be sent to an assessment clinic if the applicant has committed a specified number of drug driving offences in the 5 years preceding the commission of the most recent drug driving offence. Again, the principal effect of the amendment is to ensure that an assessment is required if the applicant committed a required number of offences in the 5 years preceding the offence that led to the most recent loss of licence, rather than in the 5 years preceding the date on which the application for a new licence is made.

6—Amendment of section 81A—Provisional licences

This clause amends section 81A(16), 81A(17) and 81A(18) of the measure, as inserted by the Motor Vehicles (Miscellaneous No 2) Amendment Act 2009.

Section 81A(16) provides that the holder of a P1 or P2 licence must not, if he or she is under the age of 25, drive a high powered motor vehicle (which is a vehicle of a class prescribed by the regulations or by the Registrar by notice in the Gazette). A minor amendment is made to section 81A(16) to ensure consistency in the use of terms in the Act.

Section 81A(17) provides that the Registrar may, on application by a P1 or P2 licence holder (and payment of the prescribed fee, if any), grant the holder an exemption from the prohibition in section 81A(16) for such a term and subject to such conditions as the Registrar thinks fit. Section 81A(18) then requires the Registrar to issue a certificate of exemption to such persons.

This amendment, together with the amendment in clause 10, make it clear that regulations can be made on matters relating to exemptions under section 81A(17), including the issue, carriage and production of certificates of exemption and the use, suspension, cancellation or surrender of exemptions or certificates of exemption.

7—Amendment of section 81AB—Probationary licences

This amendment is consequential on amendments made by the Motor Vehicles (Miscellaneous No 2) Amendment Act 2009.

8—Amendment of section 98AAD—Licence or learner's permit falsely obtained is void

Section 98AAD(2) makes it an offence (without lawful excuse) to have possession of a licence or learner's permit that was issued or renewed on the basis of false or misleading statements or evidence given by the applicant. This amendment increases the maximum penalty from $750 to $2,500 in line with the penalty for similar offences in the Act.

9—Amendment of section 139BD—Service and commencement of notices of disqualification

This amendment is consequential on amendments made by the Motor Vehicles (Miscellaneous No 2) Amendment Act 2009.

10—Amendment of section 145—Regulations

This amendment provides for the making of regulations on matters relating to exemptions from the prohibition on the driving of high powered vehicles by P1 and P2 licence holders (exemptions that can be granted by the Registrar under section 81A(17)). Regulations can be made, amongst other things, on the issue, carriage and production of certificates of exemption and the use, suspension, cancellation or surrender of exemptions or certificates of exemption.

Debate adjourned on motion of Mr Williams.