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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1)
2011-02-10 Daily Xml
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SPENT CONVICTIONS LEGISLATION

The Hon. R.B. SUCH (Fisher) (14:58): My question is to the Attorney-General. When will the spent convictions legislation come into force, and how will it benefit South Australians?

The Hon. J.R. RAU (Enfield—Deputy Premier, Attorney-General, Minister for Justice, Minister for Urban Development and Planning, Minister for Tourism, Minister for Food Marketing) (14:58): I want to thank the member for Fisher for his question. As all members in this chamber know, the member for Fisher has been a persistent campaigner in relation to this issue for many years, and I would like to say that both he and the former attorney are to be congratulated by virtue of this legislation now being in place. The act comes into force on Sunday 13 February. As from that time, the spent convictions regime in South Australia will come into line with the systems operating in other Australian jurisdictions.

Minor convictions are spent after 10 years for adults and five years for juveniles. Reoffenders would have to wait for a longer period before convictions were spent. Convictions being spent in another state would not revive because a person simply moved to South Australia. It is important for members in this place to recall that spent convictions, even though spent for many purposes, are not spent for all purposes. There are some areas of employment, for example, where it is highly relevant that those convictions still be considered. Nevertheless, it is a big step forward in relation to this matter. Those areas include sensitive jobs where police checks would be involved; for example, in law enforcement positions and things of that nature.

I have to tell the parliament, the member for Fisher and other members on both sides of the chamber who have asked me about this, that we are consulting on the possibility of a future amendment to this particular piece of legislation to deem a particular conviction spent instead of simply relying on the blanket prescription method existing in legislation. However, I have to tell the parliament that, in the event of that option being taken up, it is my view that such a conviction, if not contained within the general categories, would have to be both trivial and have had no impact on a particular victim, and that is a matter about which we will be consulting in the months ahead.

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