Page 4084 - Week 14 - Tuesday, 22 October 1991
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and the reason why we pressed ourselves forward for election before self-government. We remain as concerned now as we were then about lobby-driven development in this Territory and all of the implications it has.
MR CONNOLLY (Attorney-General, Minister for Housing and Community Services and Minister for Urban Services) (9.23), in reply: I am pleased to hear what I think is general support in the chamber for this legislation, which is essentially machinery and enabling legislation, mirroring, as I said in my introduction speech, the Northern Territory provisions. It will enable the Australian Capital Territory, should we ever need to, to refer a matter to the National Crime Authority and bring that authority into the Territory.
It is worth members noting when considering this legislation that Tasmania has been a party to the NCA system since day one. It has had this legislation on its books since day one and yet has never had to participate in an NCA reference. So, the mere fact that we establish this machinery provision and allow the Territory, should it need to, to use the NCA does not mean that we are likely to do so this year, next year or the year after. Indeed, the Tasmanian Government, which became a party in the mid-1980s, has never had need to refer a matter to the NCA.
As Mr Collaery pointed out, the NCA has changed its focus in recent years and is now focusing attention primarily on areas of white collar crime, major fraud, corporate fraud, computer fraud - areas where, in the Australian community at least, there is a degree of cynicism about law enforcement.
There is an unfortunate perception in the community that if a person with limited means, a person in receipt of social security benefits, say, should go down to Woolworths and rip off goods to the value of $16 he is likely to find himself in gaol; but if a person rips off $16m or $1,600m through corporate fraud he is likely to end up enjoying his days in the south of France or in Spain, immune from prosecution authorities and living the high life. The community, quite properly, is cynical of law enforcement when there is seen to be a rigorous degree of enforcement against what may be seen as minor crime; yet persons connected with offences that involve breathtaking sums of money are seen to be beyond the reach of the law.
For the reasons Mr Collaery outlined, I think the move Justice Phillips has taken as chair of the NCA, to move more in the direction of pursuing those major white collar offences, has been welcomed generally around Australia. It is only when the Australian law enforcement community can
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