Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements

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CRIMES AMENDMENT REGULATIONS 1999 (NO. 1) 1999 NO. 156

STATUTORY RULES 1999 NO. 156

Issued by the authority of the Minister for Justice and Customs

Crimes Act 1914

Crimes Amendment Regulations 1999 (No. 1)

Section 91 of the Crimes Act 1914 (the Crimes Act) provides that the GovernorGeneral may make regulations for carrying out or giving effect to the Crimes Act.

The purpose of the Crimes Amendment Regulations is to exempt ACT Corrective Services from the provisions of the Spent Convictions Scheme for certain purposes.

The Spent Convictions Scheme is contained in Division 3 of Part VIIC of the Crimes Act. This scheme provides a mechanism whereby certain convictions that are over 10 years old can be 'spent'. If a person was convicted of an offence 10 years ago or more (5 years if convicted as a minor) and was sentenced to less that 30 months imprisonment and has not reoffended since that conviction, then the conviction is 'spent'. The person may then lawfully state, on oath or otherwise, that he or she was never convicted of the offence. In most circumstances, another person who knows of the offence is not allowed to disclose it without the consent of the person convicted, or to take it into account in any decision making process.

The Spent Convictions Scheme provides for exclusions under regulation, pursuant to which a person may be required to disclose an offence to which the Scheme would otherwise apply. Existing exclusions are listed in schedule 4 of the Crimes Regulations. Under paragraph 85ZZH(k) of the Crimes Act an exclusion may be granted to:

a prescribed person or body, for a prescribed purpose, in relation to a conviction for a prescribed offence.

Schedule 1 to the regulations excludes ACT Corrective Services from the Spent Convictions Scheme for the purpose of assessing the suitability of a person to have responsibility for the care and control of prisoners (including detainees), in relation to offences involving violence.

ACT Corrective Services is responsible for the provision of correctional services to the ACT community. It monitors compliance with court orders and reports to the court when these orders are not complied with. It also monitors compliance with Parole Board orders. ACT Corrective Services prepares pre-sentence and other reports for the courts as required. It has a duty of care towards people held in custody in the ACT, including detainees remanded into custody under the Remand Centres Act 1976 and those detained under the Periodic Detention Act 1995. The Service also provides custodial escort services in respect of arrested persons under the Custodial Escorts Act 1998.

ACT Corrective Services provides advisory services to the ACT Government, develops, implements and reviews sentencing options and monitors and reviews contract arrangements relating to the custody and care of sentenced ACT prisoners in NSW institutions. ACT Corrective Services is also required to detail its functions, procedures and policies in annual reports to government.

The rationale for the exclusion is that prisoners are in a vulnerable position and need to be protected from persons with a history of violence. Exclusions have previously been prescribed in relation to prison administrations in Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia and the Northern Territory. The exclusion is an accordance with the recommendation of the Privacy Commissioner.

The Regulations commence on gazettal.