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| Madam Speaker, I move that the bill be now read a second time. The purpose of this bill is to establish a legal framework for a public website listing details of child sex offenders and child homicide offenders in the Northern Territory. On 15 October 2014 I was proud to announce that the Northern Territory will be the first jurisdiction in the country to introduce a publicly-accessible website featuring details and locations of convicted child offenders. In memory of Daniel Morcombe, who was a victim of a child sex offender and also a murder victim, the legislation is to be known as ‘Daniel’s Law’. This bill delivers on that commitment and the government’s ongoing commitment to protect those who are vulnerable in our community, and putting victims first. The bill provides for the establishment of a public website to list convicted child sex offenders and child homicide offenders in the Northern Territory. The website will be a basic user-friendly and searchable public website that is open and accessible to all. The website will provide families with an additional tool to protect their children. The website will list serious offenders, being life and 15-year reportable offenders under the Child Protection (Offender Reporting and Registration) Act. These offenders are serious child sex offenders and those convicted of murder or manslaughter of children. The website will also include other reportable offenders who have absconded and whose whereabouts are unknown and offenders who come to the Northern Territory from other jurisdictions and have a previous equivalent conviction in that jurisdiction. The website will be maintained by the Commissioner of Police. The website will publish general information about an offender including their name, a photograph and a general description of relevant offences the person has been convicted of and the offender’s general location. Exact addresses of offenders will not be published. Offenders who are children will not have their details published on the website. Children are not reportable offenders under the Child Protection (Offender Reporting and Registration) Act unless, in the most serious cases of offending, a special application is made and an order is given by the court. The bill establishes a panel which will have the role of determining if an offender’s details should be published on the website. The panel will consist of the Commissioner of Police, the Commissioner of Correctional Services and the Chief Executive Officer of the Department of Attorney-General and Justice. The bill sets out criteria that applies when the panel is considering whether to publish an offender’s details. A person’s details will not be published in circumstances where it would contravene a court suppression order, cause significant harm to a victim that would outweigh the public benefit in publishing the details, or there are other valid reasons not to publish the offender’s details. These are all measures intended to protect victims of child sexual abuse. The process in considering publication of offender’s details on the website will commence by notifying the offender, in most cases prior to when they are released from custody. Victims will also be notified where they are listed on the victim’s register or make specific requests to be informed. There will be no cold calling of victims to ensure their privacy is respected. Contact details for the NT Police will be widely published so that victims who wish to be involved in the process can be kept informed. The panel has powers to request information from other government bodies to assist in the decision-making process. Victims have a choice to be part of this process but they are not compelled to provide information should they decline to do so. The panel, upon reaching its decision, is required to provide reasons for its decision to a victim who has requested to be informed of the outcome. Where the panel decides to publish the details of an offender on the website written reasons will also be provided to that offender. The bill requires the panel to reconsider a decision where a victim so applies. The bill provides the ability for the panel to reconsider its decisions on its own initiative. Affected parties have a statutory right of review to the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal to review the panel’s decision. This initiative is intended as an additional tool for Territory families to protect their children. The website will exist for members of the public to access the information and it is expected people will use this in an informative and measured way. I have been clear since the announcement of this policy that vigilante behaviour will not be tolerated. We do not want people taking the law into their own hands and for this reason the bill contains an offence which will apply where the person promotes abuse towards an offender or members of the offender’s immediate family. A further offence exists where a person publishes or displays an offender’s detail from the website without prior permission of the minister to do so. I also draw members’ attention to the existence of other potentially relevant offences in the Criminal Code and the Summary Offences Act which may apply should people decide to take the law into their own hands and act as vigilantes. Work continues on the development of the website through a cross-agency working group. The website development is being led by the Child Protection Offender Registry within the Northern Territory Police. There are currently over 200 reportable offenders being managed by that registry who could be eligible to be published on the website. Work will commence shortly to initiate the process of notification to those offenders and, where appropriate, their victims about the potential publication of the offender’s details on the website. Life reportable offenders will be the immediate focus for consideration of publishing their details on the website. I expect the website will go live early in the New Year. I have previously stated that unfortunately the world is not a perfect place and that child predators do exist. However, with the use of an additional tool such as the information to be contained on this website, a parent is in a much better position to protect their child. I commend this bill to honourable members and I table a copy of the explanatory statement. Debate adjourned. |