Page 1597 - Week 05 - Thursday, 8 May 2008
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Mr Speaker, I will be brief. This is a fairly straightforward motion. This motion gives some time to the Standing Committee on Education, Children and Young People to look at this very important piece of legislation, and it requires that they report back to the Assembly on the first sitting day of the last sitting fortnight of the legislative year.
I am conscious that that is a very narrow time frame, but I am driven by the fact that the children and young people’s legislation is extraordinarily important. It is also probably the largest piece of legislation—especially now that we have had the consequential amendments tabled today—that has ever been put before the ACT Legislative Assembly.
When we changed the planning system the legislation was referred to the planning and environment committee. When the new ACTPLA was established, that was referred to the planning and environment committee. When we changed the environment protection legislation, that matter was referred to the committee at the time. Important pieces of legislation are, as a matter of course, referred to committee for investigation and report. What could be more important, Mr Speaker, than the future of our children and young people?
This legislation principally refers to the most vulnerable children in our community—children who are in the care of the territory and children who are at risk of being sentenced to juvenile detention. I know that the minister will say that there has been extensive consultation. I was a member of the education, children and young people’s committee, and about 18 months ago the committee received a briefing about the consultation process and the progress on the putting together of the bill. But there has been no oversight and scrutiny by a committee of this place of the largest and, I would say, the most important piece of legislation that has ever been brought before this Assembly. It is definitely the most important piece of legislation brought before this current Assembly in the last four years.
Although I understand the urgency of the two ministers in getting this to go forward, I think that there is time for us to pause. The consultation has been extensive; I know that. But I do not know for sure that all of the people who have been consulted have had their views appropriately considered. That does not mean to say that they have to have their views taken on board, but they have to be appropriately considered.
It is absolutely vital for the confidence the community has in this legislation that every avenue of appropriate consultation is given weight. I am grateful to the ministers for the level of support they have so far provided and have offered in a continuing way to me and other members of the opposition and, I gather, members of the crossbench to get across this legislation, which is complex. But that is not enough.
A report from a committee is about ensuring that the community is engaged. If the ministers are correct and the community has been engaged to a high level and the process essentially has the tick off from the community, the report from the education committee will be a brief one, I would say. What that will do is actually confirm for the community what the ministers are saying about the level of consultation. But to have a piece of legislation this large and this vital to the good governance of the ACT
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