Statutes Amendment (Attorney-General's Portfolio) (No 4) Bill

Introduction and First Reading

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Attorney-General, Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector) (11:12): Obtained leave and introduced a bill for an act to amend the Summary Offences Act 1953, the Surveillance Devices Act 2016 and the Telecommunications (Interception) Act 2012. Read a first time.

Second Reading

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Attorney-General, Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector) (11:12): I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

Today, I introduce the Statutes Amendment (Attorney-General's Portfolio) (No. 4) Bill 2023. This bill will progress miscellaneous amendments to legislation committed to me as Attorney-General.

Firstly, the bill makes changes to the Summary Offences Act 1953 to adjust the reporting obligations conferred on the Commissioner of Police in relation to roadblocks and dangerous area declarations. Sections 74B and 83B of the Summary Offences Act currently require the Commissioner of Police to submit a report to me every three months stating the number of roadblock authorisations and dangerous area declarations that were granted by police during the relevant period. As Attorney-General, I am also required to table copies of these reports to parliament.

The bill amends the reporting requirements in sections 74B and 83B to allow for the Commissioner of Police to include the required information in the annual report, rather than in quarterly reports. These changes are consistent with the manner in which the Commissioner of Police currently reports on other matters under the Summary Offences Act. The amendments will also assist to reduce the regulatory burden on the Commissioner of Police while ensuring that required information continues to be published and remains publicly available.

Secondly, necessary amendments will be made to the Surveillance Devices Act 2016 and the Telecommunications (Interception) Act 2012 in light of the appointment of the Inspector of ICAC. As a result of changes made by the Independent Commissioner Against Corruption (CPIPC Recommendations) Amendment Act 2021, a new schedule 4 to the ICAC Act will replace the reviewer of ICAC with the inspector.

The inspector has the role of overseeing the operation of ICAC and the Office for Public Integrity and conducting reviews of its operation to ascertain if there has been any corruption, misconduct, unreasonable delays or invasions of privacy and the like in the conduct of the ICAC and the OPI. Under both the Surveillance Devices Act and Telecommunications (Interception) Act, the reviewer is the review agency for an investigating agency or eligible authority exercising powers under both acts.

The review agency is to inspect the records of the agencies at least once every six months to determine their compliance with legislative requirements and report on the results of the inspection to me as Attorney-General.

While the reviewer has been replaced by the inspector, the ICAC amendment act did not contain related amendments that would confer those functions under the Surveillance Devices Act and the Telecommunications (Interception) Act on the inspector. The bill amends those two acts to define the review agency for each act as the inspector in order that the inspector may undertake those review functions. I commend the bill to the chamber and seek leave to insert the explanation of clauses in Hansard without my reading it.

Leave granted.

Explanation of Clauses

Part 1—Preliminary

1—Short title

2—Commencement

These clauses are formal.

Part 2—Amendment of Summary Offences Act 1953

3—Amendment of section 74B—Road blocks

This clause amends section 74B of the principal Act to change the reporting requirements relating to declarations made under that section.

4—Amendment of section 83B—Dangerous areas

This clause amends section 83B of the principal Act to change the reporting requirements relating to declarations made under that section.

Part 3—Amendment of Surveillance Devices Act 2016

5—Amendment of section 3—Interpretation

This clause amends the definition of review agency by deleting references to 'reviewer' and substituting them with references to 'Inspector'.

Part 4—Amendment of Telecommunications (Interception) Act 2012

6—Amendment of section 2—Interpretation

This clause amends the definition of review agency by deleting references to 'reviewer' and substituting them with references to 'Inspector'.

Schedule 1—Transitional provision

1—Reviews

This clause sets out various transitional arrangements in respect of certain reviews required to be conducted under section 32 of the Surveillance Devices Act 2016 and section 5 of the Telecommunications (Interception) Act 2012.

Debate adjourned on motion of Hon. L.A. Henderson.