Bills

Criminal Law Consolidation (Criminal Organisations - Prescribed Places) Amendment Bill

Introduction and First Reading

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Attorney-General, Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector) (15:20): Obtained leave and introduced a bill for an act to amend the Criminal Law Consolidation Act 1935 and to make related amendments to the Criminal Law Consolidation (Criminal Organisations) Regulations 2015. Read a first time.

Second Reading

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Attorney-General, Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector) (15:21): I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

Today, I introduce the Criminal Law Consolidation (Criminal Organisations—Prescribed Places) Amendment Bill 2023. Under the Criminal Law Consolidation Act 1935 there are restrictions on participants in criminal organisations entering or attempting to enter a prescribed place. Any person who is a participant in a criminal organisation who enters or attempts to enter a prescribed place commits an offence. A maximum penalty for this offence of three years' imprisonment applies.

These, and a range of other measures in the act, form an important part of a range of strategies to tackle serious and organised crime and improve community safety. As a result of a recently delivered judgement of the High Court of Australia in Disorganized Developments Pty Ltd & Ors v State of South Australia [2023] HCA 22, regulations made by the previous Liberal government in 2020 to declare properties at Cowirra as prescribed places were found to be invalid.

This government intends to do everything within its power to limit any risk of outlaw motorcycle gang participants returning to properties associated with criminal organisations. Therefore, this bill will declare certain properties that have continued association with criminal organisations to be prescribed places for the purposes of the definition of the Criminal Law Consolidation Act by making new regulations. The amendments are set out in a schedule to the bill which will, upon commencement, amend the Criminal Law Consolidation (Criminal Organisations) Regulations 2015.

The properties to be declared as prescribed places have all previously been prescribed places for the purposes of the act. These properties are places that, on the advice of SAPOL, continue to be connected with, and are at risk of being used as meeting places for, criminal organisations. It is in the interests of community safety and the disruption of criminal activity that these properties remain as prescribed places.

The bill will also delete, and thereby repeal, the existing regulations that declare prescribed places so that a number of properties no longer associated with criminal organisations, on the advice of SAPOL, will be removed as prescribed places.

In addition, the bill will amend the act to provide that there is no obligation to provide procedural fairness in relation to the making of a declaration by regulation that an entity is a criminal organisation, an event is a prescribed event or a place is a prescribed place for the purposes of definitions in the act.

This government and previous Labor governments have a proud history of legislating to disrupt, destabilise and dismantle criminal organisations in South Australia, making our community a safer place for its law-abiding citizens. This Labor government has absolutely zero tolerance for the misery that outlaw motorcycle gangs bring on the community. We agree with the observations of Justice Steward who said, in the Disorganized Developments case, that:

It is, with great respect, a remarkable proposition to require the South Australian government to consult with a criminal organisation before declaring one of that organisation's properties to be a prescribed place.

We doubt it was ever parliament's intention for it to be so, but we are pleased to be acting quickly to rectify this situation with the bill we are introducing today. 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

This clause is formal.

Part 2—Amendment of Criminal Law Consolidation Act 1935

2—Amendment of section 83GA—Preliminary

This clause amends section 83GA of the Criminal Law Consolidation Act 1935 to provide that no obligation to provide procedural fairness exists in relation to the making of a declaration by regulation that—

(a) an entity is a criminal organisation for the purposes of paragraph (c) of the definition of criminal organisation in section 83GA(1); or

(b) an event is a prescribed event for the purposes of the definition of prescribed event in section 83GA(1); or

(c) a place is a prescribed place for the purposes of the definition of prescribed place in section 83GA(1).

This clause also amends section 83GA of the Criminal Law Consolidation Act 1935 to update references to the Subordinate Legislation Act 1978 to now refer to the Legislative Instruments Act 1978.

Schedule 1—Related amendments to Criminal Law Consolidation (Criminal Organisations) Regulations 2015

Part 1—Preliminary

1—Effect of Part 2

This clause provides that Part 2 of Schedule 1 has effect to amend the Criminal Law Consolidation (Criminal Organisations) Regulations 2015 and that those amendments have effect to—

(a) repeal the declaration of certain places as prescribed places for the purposes of the definition of prescribed place in section 83GA(1) of the Criminal Law Consolidation Act 1935 by deleting regulations 3 and 4; and

(b) declare certain places to be prescribed places for the purposes of the definition of prescribed place in section 83GA(1) of the Criminal Law Consolidation Act 1935 by making new regulations 3 to 9 (inclusive).

This clause further provides that—

(a) section 83GA(2) of the Criminal Law Consolidation Act 1935 does not apply to a regulation made under Part 2 of Schedule 1; and

(b) the Legislative Instruments Act 1978 does not apply in relation to a regulation made under Part 2 of Schedule 1.

Part 2—Amendment of Criminal Law Consolidation (Criminal Organisations) Regulations 2015

2—Substitution of regulations 3 and 4

This clause provides that regulations 3 and 4 of the Criminal Law Consolidation (Criminal Organisations) Regulations 2015 are deleted (and thereby repealed) and that new regulations are made in substitution declaring various places to be prescribed places for the purposes of the definition of prescribed place in section 83GA(1) of the Criminal Law Consolidation Act 1935. The places that are to be declared as prescribed places are as follows:

(a) under proposed new regulation 3—the whole of the land contained in Certificate of title 5995/665 (which relates to property at the address 591 Kenny Road, Cowirra);

(b) under proposed new regulation 4—the whole of the land contained in Certificate of title 5880/413 (which relates to property at the address Lot 555 Kenny Road, Cowirra);

(c) under proposed new regulation 5—the whole of the land contained in Certificate of title 6142/108 (which relates to property at the address 305 Commercial Street West, Mount Gambier);

(d) under proposed new regulation 6—the whole of the land contained in Certificate of title 5696/244 (which relates to property at the address 108-118 Francis Road, Wingfield);

(e) under proposed new regulation 7—the whole of the land contained in Certificate of title 5249/413 (which relates to property at the address 108-118 Francis Road, Wingfield);

(f) under proposed new regulation 8—the whole of the land contained in Certificate of title 5249/414 (which relates to property at the address 108-118 Francis Road, Wingfield);

(g) under proposed new regulation 9—the whole of the land contained in Certificate of title 5249/415 (which relates to property at the address 108-118 Francis Road, Wingfield).

Debate adjourned on motion of Hon. N.J. Centofanti.