Page 4388 - Week 10 - Thursday, 23 September 2010
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together with those of the Territory Records Act 2002, making the amended act the primary point of access for government records. Cabinet records will open at 10 years and other government records at 20 years, and they will be available for public access each year from Canberra Day. This will be an important way of recognising the extensive documentary heritage that we have here in the ACT.
The amended act will also enable us to transfer records when required to another jurisdiction, and the government will be able to prevent the disposal of records when they may be required in a forthcoming court case. The Territory Records Advisory Council, which already has a membership representing agencies, professional, community and Indigenous interests to advise on records management, will now also have representation from someone with a background in public administration, governance or public accountability. This will enhance the already valuable role of the council. I commend this bill to the Assembly.
Debate (on motion by Mr Coe) adjourned to the next sitting.
Criminal Code Amendment Bill 2010
Mr Corbell, pursuant to notice, presented the bill, its explanatory statement and a Human Rights Act compatibility statement.
Title read by Clerk.
MR CORBELL (Molonglo—Attorney-General, Minister for the Environment, Climate Change and Water, Minister for Energy and Minister for Police and Emergency Services) (10.05): I move:
That this bill be agreed to in principle.
The Criminal Code Amendment Bill 2010 introduces a defence of lawful possession into the Criminal Code. This defence will be available for people who can show that their possession of otherwise prohibited material or items is related to a person’s employment or their work within the criminal justice system.
The defence of lawful possession has three limbs which a person must satisfy before they can rely on the defence. The first limb is that a person must be able to show that their possession of an item or material is as a result of their work or employment within the parameters of the criminal justice system. Section 43A(1)(a) of the bill sets out what “work” or “employment” within the parameters of the criminal justice system means. Under this section, a person must be able to show that they are either employed by or appointed as a member of a law enforcement or justice agency, required to provide technical, professional or expert services to a law enforcement or justice agency, or a legal practitioner, or a person employed by or required to provide technical, professional or expert services to a legal practitioner.
The second limb is that the conduct by which the person comes to possess the material or item must be for a law enforcement purpose. The bill defines what constitutes conduct for law enforcement purposes in section 43A(2) as conduct that is necessary
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