Page 5711 - Week 17 - Thursday, 5 December 1991
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MR JENSEN: Yes, for illegal mining in the ACT.
MR KAINE (Leader of the Opposition) (5.16): I would like to support Mr Jensen on this. I looked at this and I thought $5,000 was very little deterrent. I discussed it with my colleagues and we came to the conclusion that there ought to be something of the order of $20,000 for a natural person and $100,000 for a corporation rather than just $5,000. I have not drafted an amendment to that effect, but I believe that $5,000 for a mining offence is much too low.
MR WOOD (Minister for Education and the Arts and Minister for the Environment, Land and Planning) (5.17): Mr Speaker, I draw members' attention to clause 283 on page 130.
Mr Collaery: We know that.
MR WOOD: You know that. For the benefit of members who are not reading it, it says that a fine not exceeding five times the amount may be imposed for a body corporate.
Mr Jensen: That is chickenfeed.
Mr Collaery: That only makes it $20,000 for a corporate body.
MR WOOD: We indicated in an earlier debate that we will be reviewing penalties. I think we should keep that consistency.
MR JENSEN (5.17): Mr Speaker, I have to reiterate that this sort of fine is chickenfeed. Even $100,000 is chickenfeed for this sort of activity.
Mr Connolly: A million dollars and a flaying.
MR JENSEN: I tell you what, Mr Connolly: New South Wales and even Queensland are moving towards these sorts of quite heavy penalties for this sort of thing and for environmental breaches. I think it is quite appropriate for these sorts of fines to be increased. I commend this amendment to the Assembly most strongly .
Amendment agreed to.
MR MOORE (5.18): I move:
Page 134, item 9, column 3, omit "$5,000", substitute "$500".
It is a very strange situation where on the one hand we had what was a quite low fine for mining but on the other hand we have a high fine for permitting a tree, a sapling, a plant or a shrub to overhang a public place so as to obstruct or inconvenience a person in that place. How many of us are not guilty? Who has a tree hanging over their nature strip?
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