Page 4120 - Week 14 - Wednesday, 23 October 1991
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I now seek leave to present an explanatory memorandum to the Bill.
Leave granted.
MR WOOD (Minister for Education and the Arts and Minister for the Environment, Land and Planning) (10.46): Mr Speaker, I move:
That the debate be now adjourned.
This Bill is substantially an indictment of Mr Jensen's activities earlier.
MR SPEAKER: Order!
Question resolved in the affirmative.
CHILDREN'S SERVICES (AMENDMENT) BILL (NO. 3) 1991
MR COLLAERY (10.46): Mr Speaker, I present the Children's Services (Amendment) Bill (No. 3) 1991. I move:
That this Bill be agreed to in principle.
The Residents Rally is pleased to introduce the Children's Services (Amendment) Bill (No. 3) 1991 in National Children's Week. This amendment to the Children's Services Act 1986 proposes that it be an offence to involve children of tender years - under the age of eight - in door-to-door soliciting. Community surveys and crime statistics show all too tragically the vulnerability of young children, particularly infants, in the community. Their vulnerability is increased when they are allowed to go about alone, or sometimes accompanied by a child of the same age, selling raffle tickets and seeking subscriptions door to door.
If the community wants to focus on the protection of children in Children's Week, it needs to look carefully at this Bill. We have much less concern about organised doorknocking arrangements properly supervised, such as the Scouting movement Job Week and so forth. But, at the vulnerable ages of four, five, six and seven years, the community may wish to consider placing a positive injunction on parents and guardians and other authorities who might expose these children to physical danger.
We propose to leave the Bill open for debate until the December sittings. As it is Children's Week, we hope that the matter will receive a proper community debate, and the Rally, as ever, will be guided by that reaction. We will not, therefore, ram this Bill through. It creates a new offence of involving children in situations which, effectively, make them vulnerable. Members may wish to
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