Page 3442 - Week 08 - Tuesday, 17 August 2010
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I would like to take a moment also to reflect that the bill already provides other avenues for victims to ensure that real or apparent conflicts of interest can be overcome. The bill does that by simply and clearly leaving open to a victim the right to lodge their complaint directly with the relevant complaints handling entity, whether having first tried to avail themselves of the assistance of the commissioner or not.
There would also be an opportunity under the laws of the territory for a person to lodge a complaint with the Ombudsman against the commissioner if the person was dissatisfied with the commissioner’s own administrative decisions.
I believe these are sufficient safeguards in relation to the matters that Mrs Dunne is concerned about, but I appreciate that other members do not share this view, and the government will not further oppose this amendment.
Amendment agreed to.
Clause 10, as amended, agreed to.
Clauses 11 and 12, by leave, taken together and agreed to.
Clause 13.
MR CORBELL (Molonglo—Attorney-General, Minister for the Environment, Climate Change and Water, Minister for Energy and Minister for Police and Emergency Services) (5.46), by leave: Pursuant to standing order 182A(a), I move my amendment No 1 relating to clause 13 as an urgent amendment [see schedule 2 at page 3451].
This amendment substitutes the existing definitions of the operations of the Victims Assistance Board. It is designed to provide for a more detailed and clearer explanation of the functions of this board. I would like to outline to members that the proposals as outlined in the bill, as presented, provided for the advice and decision making on policy matters that dealt with the operational interaction between agencies, not intending that these provisions would be read in a way to imply that this board had the ability to make policy that was rightly the preserve either of the executive, through regulation, or through the Assembly itself through legislation.
But it was designed to reflect the fact that there are a broad range of operational policy decisions that are necessarily complex, necessarily technical in nature and are best resolved between relevant criminal justice agencies. Nevertheless, I recognise that members have a concern about these provisions. Therefore, in the spirit of trying to reach a satisfactory conclusion of this particular matter, I propose these amendments.
The amendments recognise that it will be the role of the Victims Assistance Board to advise the minister on policies, priorities and strategies that deal with the acknowledgement, protection and promotion of the interests of victims of crime. Secondly, if asked by the minister, the board will develop and maintain protocols and
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