Page 5634 - Week 13 - Thursday, 18 November 2010
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I turn now to the second aspect of the reforms. This is separate to the main reforms and relates to the bail jurisdiction of the Magistrates Court. The introduction of this reform is a direct response by the government to concerns expressed by the Supreme Court judiciary. These concerns relate to the fact that, once an accused person is appearing before the Supreme Court in their proceedings, the Bail Act prevents the Magistrates Court from making any further bail decision. While in the ordinary course of events this causes no difficulty, it does mean that a person who has been arrested for breaching bail in a Supreme Court matter cannot be taken to the Magistrates Court on a Saturday morning. As the Supreme Court does not sit on a Saturday, the person is held in custody until the Monday morning.
It is proposed to extend the bail jurisdiction of the Magistrates Court to address this problem in a practical way. The proposed reform will operate so that, when the Magistrates Court is sitting on a weekend or public holiday and a person is arrested for breaching a bail condition in a Supreme Court case, that person may appear in front of the Magistrates Court for the decision to be made in relation to bail.
In conclusion, these proposed reforms of the Bail Act will assist effective case management in the court system and help to promote better access and timely access to justice in the territory. I commend the bill to the Assembly.
Debate (on motion by Mrs Dunne) adjourned to the next sitting.
Fair Trading (Australian Consumer Law) Amendment Bill 2010
Mr Corbell, pursuant to notice, presented the bill, its explanatory statement and a Human Rights Act compatibility statement.
Title read by Clerk.
MR CORBELL (Molonglo—Attorney-General, Minister for the Environment, Climate Change and Water, Minister for Energy and Minister for Police and Emergency Services) (10.13): I move:
That this bill be agreed to in principle.
I am pleased to present the Fair Trading (Australian Consumer Law) Amendment Bill 2010 to the Assembly today. This bill provides the ACT with an opportunity to strengthen its consumer protection law and join with other jurisdictions in implementing the first ever Australian national consumer law system, to the benefit of both consumers and business. In the national partnership agreement to deliver a seamless national economy, the Council of Australian Governments agreed to complete the legislative process to implement the Australian Consumer Law—known as the ACL—by 31 December this year and that the ACL will commence in all jurisdictions on 1 January 2011.
On 2 July 2009, the government signed the COAG intergovernmental agreement for the Australian Consumer Law, which underpins the ACL and outlines the
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