Page 4091 - Week 14 - Tuesday, 22 October 1991
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In the particular Bill which the Attorney has brought in, a number of very necessary amendments have in fact been made. The Attorney, in his speech, neglected to mention a few points which I will mention because they relate to essential amendments to ensure that the law - the criminal law especially and also the motor traffic law - operates effectively.
Clause 9 amends section 29 of the principal Act by omitting certain subsections and substituting new subsections to ensure that police can in fact conduct investigations and ask questions pursuant to the Motor Traffic (Alcohol and Drugs) Act and treat a 17-year-old who is under the influence of alcohol and over the prescribed concentration of liquor in the same way that they would treat any other driver. There are, by necessity, in relation to this Act, provisions for the treatment of young people that are different from those applying to adults. That is proper, and that has been enshrined in the Children's Court jurisdiction for some time.
But that is not appropriate in terms of traffic offences and drink-driving offences. The young person of 17 who has a licence has had to pass a test like anyone else, and they have to abide by the rules of the road and they are subject to the same questioning as anyone else who has a licence. A licence is not a right; it is a privilege. Accordingly, clause 10 also carries on that principle, and I am pleased to see that amendment there because, again, it covers potentially very serious anomalies and problems with this Act.
Also, I am pleased to see paragraph 47(1)(k) in the principal Act being amended so that six months in detention in a shelter has been increased to a maximum of two years. The Attorney did not highlight it, of course, in his speech. I would not expect the Labor Party to do that. But that is, I believe, to ensure that young people can in fact stay in the Territory if they are incarcerated in a shelter - and the shelter, of course, in this case is Quamby Remand Centre, which is also an institution. I think that also is a very sensible amendment.
The Attorney is checking out something which I would seek to amend, and that is clause 18, in relation to attendance centre orders. In the adult court, community service orders can be given for up to 208 hours, which is, I think, a maximum of 28 days' work. Often the courts, naturally, allow that over a period of about 12 months. Of course, a community service order provides services to the community. It might be mowing lawns; it might be gardening; it might be painting; it might be doing labouring. Often it is assisting old people and the less privileged in our community.
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