Page 4296 - Week 14 - Tuesday, 29 November 1994
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .
HEALTH LEGISLATION (CONSEQUENTIAL AMENDMENTS) BILL 1994
Debate resumed ]from 10 November 1994, on motion by Mr Connolly:
That this Bill be agreed to in principle.
Question resolved in the affirmative.
Bill agreed to in principle.
Leave granted to dispense with the detail stage.
Bill agreed to.
ADJOURNMENT
Motion (by Mr Berry) proposed:
That the Assembly do now adjourn.
Victims of Crime
MR STEFANIAK (11.45): Perhaps I could have done this during the debate on the Victims of Crime Bill, but I seek to do it now. The Attorney said that that is landmark legislation. It certainly is. It was something I was very keen to see in the First Assembly and I am delighted to be part of the Second Assembly that finally has brought that legislation in and passed it. It is something that a number of people in Canberra have been very keen to see since 1987. The Victims of Crime Assistance League was formed by Rita Cameron and a number of other victims who had suffered dreadfully. Rita's young son, Grant, had been kicked to death at a school fete in Duffy in 1987. She and some like-minded souls formed the Victims of Crime Assistance League to assist fellow victims who were traumatised by the court system. The current president, Brian Slarke, also lost a loved one as a result of a criminal act. He lost his daughter. There are many victims in Canberra and many have been helped greatly by the Victims of Crime Assistance League. Rita and Brian, and the rest of the people in the league, will be very happy today that their efforts have been acknowledged by this Assembly.
Madam Speaker, I am proud to have conducted the first victim impact statement case in 1987 before Judge Kelly. Judge Kelly was appointed by, I think, the then Alliance Government to a criminal review committee. One of his main aims there was to get through victim impact statements, victim impact rights, and I think he would be very happy to see the fruition of his work today. The victim impact statement is terribly important. As a former prosecutor and, from the other side, as a former defence counsel, it is very important that all the facts are put before a court, certainly from a prosecution point of view, and the prosecutor is the one who puts the victim in the box and
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .