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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1)
2011-12-01 Daily Xml
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VULNERABLE WITNESSES

Ms THOMPSON (Reynell) (14:42): Can the Attorney-General inform the house about the government's proposed measures to improve the interaction of vulnerable witnesses with the justice system?

The Hon. J.R. RAU (Enfield—Deputy Premier, Attorney-General, Minister for Planning, Minister for Business Services and Consumers) (14:42): As members of the house would be aware, the government has recently introduced into the parliament amendments to section 34CA of the Evidence Act; however, it has become apparent that those amendments in and of themselves may not be sufficient to deal with some of the problems that have been exposed in the case of people with disabilities and/or very young children being involved in the justice system.

There is, quite rightly, considerable community concern about these vulnerable witnesses and how they might be catered for by the system. Here again, as I said, I am talking particularly about young children or people with intellectual disabilities.

This week I announced that the government will be seeking the community's views on a number of measures designed to improve the way these witnesses are treated in the justice system. The government will be consulting with a broad range of groups, including disability and children's advocates, victims of crime representatives and others. This consultation will inform a final package of amendments to the Evidence Act, which I hope to bring before the house in the new year.

Under the changes we are presently proposing, the Evidence Act would be amended to allow the admission of audiovisual records of interviews as the evidence-in-chief of witnesses to sexual or violent offences who are young children or people with intellectual disabilities; provide for the taking of evidence from young children or people with intellectual disabilities before trial in an informal manner and surroundings; and regulate how young people and people with intellectual disabilities are interviewed as witnesses in the investigation of these sorts of offences and how the interviews in general are recorded.

The government also intends to seek the priority listing of these trials to ensure that, particularly where the alleged victim has an intellectual disability, the interval between the event and the trial is reduced to the greatest extent possible. These trials involving children are already priority listed to ensure the shortest time elapses between the offence and the court proceedings.

I believe that changes of this nature will go at least part of the way to addressing the difficulties in prosecuting many of these cases. However, we cannot estimate how many difficulties are confronted, and we will not be able to solve these problems in every single case. The changes will minimise the number of times these witnesses are needed to recount their experiences to authorities and ensure that trials, as I said, occur as early as possible.

The overall aim of these changes is to balance the legitimate interests of these vulnerable witnesses with the equally legitimate and important need for an accused to receive a fair trial. I acknowledge that this is a very difficult area and there is no complete solution to the issues that often emerge in these prosecutions. However, the processes announced this week are an important start. I am keen to hear the views of interested groups and individuals so we can make new gains in improving the justice system for the most vulnerable people in our community.

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