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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2001 Week 2 Hansard (27 February) . . Page.. 321 ..
MR STANHOPE (continuing):
The bill also provides for circumstances where the purchaser does not acquire the vehicle free of registrable interest; e.g., sale to a member of the same household or related companies. In other words, Mr Speaker, the bill permits the ACT to participate in the New South Wales REV scheme. These provisions were formerly in the Registration of Interest in Goods Act 1990 which is repealed by this bill. The act was designed to allow for registration of interest in all types of goods declared under the regulations. No goods other than motor vehicles have ever been described.
I notice, for the record, Mr Speaker, that the scrutiny of bills committee, in its consideration of this bill, had no comments to offer. The Labor Party acknowledges that the provisions of this bill, to the extent that they do allow ACT residents to participate in the New South Wales scheme, do provide a quite significant extra level of security or support to the purchasers of motor vehicles, particularly here in the ACT now that we have become the property crime capital of Australia with the highest level of car thefts in the nation and burglaries going through the roof. I think people in the ACT are ever mindful of the fact that you never know whether a car you are buying was flogged or not, or whether the person trying to flog it to you had an entitlement to the vehicle.
In a way I guess the government is responding to the fact that it has failed miserably to halt property crime in the ACT. One of the responses of the government to the fact that it has turned the ACT into the car theft capital of Australia, if not the world, is to introduce a system which seeks to give purchasers of motor vehicles some security. I guess purchasers of motor vehicles can take some comfort from that, but it is very cool comfort, Mr Attorney, to all those people who are having their cars pinched in the ACT because of the appalling failings of your government.
We support this bill, Mr Attorney, acknowledging that it is a belated response by this government to the fact that it has turned the ACT into the burglary and car theft capital of the world.
MR STEFANIAK (Minister for Education and Attorney-General) (12:05): What an amazing speech on the Sale of Motor Vehicles Amendment Bill, Mr Speaker. In the next few days, Mr Stanhope, I will be announcing an initiative which I am sure the police will agree will substantially reduce some property crimes. It will be very interesting to see whether Mr Stanhope will support it or not. However, more of that later.
Mr Stanhope: Yes, 80 per cent of car thefts are okay. It's all right if you are the eight out of 10.
MR STEFANIAK: I think Mr Stanhope should check the Labor Party's appalling record on law and order in this Assembly when they were in government.
Mr Stanhope: The eight out of 10.
MR SPEAKER: Order, please! I don't want a shouting match on either side.
MR STEFANIAK
: Mr Speaker, why don't we get back to the point in issue, and that is this bill. This bill introduces improvements following developments in the New South Wales act and the notice of registrable interest. I think Mr Stanhope did refer to this before he launched into his tangent. The bill is actually defined to encompass
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