With Parliament sitting again this week, the Tasmanian Liberal Government will continue its strong commitment to keeping Tasmanian communities safe.
A Bill that will amend the Corrections Act 1997 to provide express powers for the Parole Board to impose electronic monitoring conditions on a parole order is set to be debated. This will enable Community Corrections to more effectively monitor parolees to ensure that they are complying with the conditions of their parole order when released from prison.
Parole continues to be a necessary and effective option to promote rehabilitation and reintegration, while still ensuring the protection of the community.
The Dangerous Criminals and High Risk Offenders Bill 2020 will also likely be debated this coming week. This Bill provides for a new legislative framework for dealing with dangerous criminals and serious, high risk offenders.
This legislation removes unnecessary restrictions that require a dangerous criminal declaration to be made only by the convicting or sentencing judge and will see several other reforms to Tasmania’s legislative framework for indefinite detention.
As Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, I am committed to improving access to justice for all Tasmanians and I look forward to the Tasmanian Civil and Administrative Tribunal Bill 2020 also being debated in Parliament.
The recently tabled legislation will formally establish the Tasmanian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (TasCAT), allowing co-locating tribunals to amalgamate and commence operations towards a single tribunal in early 2021.
This important reform has been discussed by governments over many decades, but we are getting on with making it happen.
My continued and strong focus is delivering on our election commitment to keeping dangerous criminals off the streets, keep communities safe, and deliver a more effective and efficient justice system for all Tasmanians.