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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2000 Week 6 Hansard (25 May) . . Page.. 1772 ..

MR MOORE (Minister for Health and Community Care) (11.12): Mr Speaker, I present the Psychologists Amendment Bill 2000, together with its explanatory memorandum.

Title read by Clerk.

MR MOORE: I move:

The Psychologists Amendment Bill 2000 amends subsection 3(2) of the Psychologists Act 1994 to make provision to include the regulation of practising psychologists employed in the public sector. The Psychologists Act 1994 was passed by the Legislative Assembly on 29 November 1994 and notified in the Gazette on 15 December 1994. The act commenced on 16 June 1995. It introduced statutory regulation for psychologists working in the ACT and made provision for controlling the practice of psychology and for related matters.

Introduction of this legislation was in accordance with an agreement of Australian health ministers to introduce uniform regulatory arrangements for health occupations. The introduction of the act demonstrated a recognition on the part of the ACT government that there was a potential for considerable harm to be caused to members of the public unless persons who provided psychological services were regulated by statute and were accountable for the manner in which they practise.

During the preparation of the legislation it was anticipated that all psychologists practising in the ACT would be regulated under the act. It appears that subsection 3(2) excludes psychologists working in the public sector from being regulated under the act. This means that a serious potential remains for considerable harm to be caused to members of the public by those persons. Persons who provide psychological services within the public sector must be subject to the same regulations as persons practising psychology in any other context.

This anomaly of excluding psychologists working in the public sector from being subject to the provisions of the act appears to occur only in this piece of health professions legislation. All health professionals who are employed in the public sector are subject to regulation under the respective acts with the exception of psychologists.

The Psychologists Amendment Bill 2000 amends section 3 of the Psychologists Act 1994 by omitting subsection (2) and replacing it with section 3A. This makes provision to include the registration of practising psychologists employed in the public sector to be regulated equally with psychologists employed in the private sector. As statutory regulation exists in the interest of protecting the public, this amendment will allow the Psychologists Board to administer the act in a manner which it can be confident in offering the public such protection.

Debate (on motion by Mr Wood ) adjourned.

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