Page 2772 - Week 07 - Wednesday, 6 June 2012
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bail in the first instance, if people cannot comply with their bail conditions, will not comply with their bail conditions or commit offences while on bail, the right to bail should be rescinded.
If they do not do that, there needs to be a very good reason why that right to bail is not being rescinded. The police and the court system have to act in the best interests of not just the bailed person but the wider community. There are instances where we have seen that young people have been bailed and they have gone out and reoffended, and reoffended in very serious ways. That gives me great concern about the operation of the bail system. This is a well-intentioned fix, but it does not do the job. The Canberra Liberals will not be supporting this bill.
MS HUNTER (Ginninderra—Parliamentary Leader, ACT Greens) (5.48), in reply: This is a simple and practical amendment to the Bail Act 1992. It is my intention that this amendment will assist in reducing the historically high numbers of young Canberrans remanded for minor breaches of bail and will strengthen the work currently undertaken by the after-hours bail support service.
This bill also responds to a recommendation presented in the government’s “Towards a diversionary framework” discussion paper that said:
Consideration should therefore be given to whether there should be more guidance in relation to action to be taken by police and the Chief Executive regarding an alleged breach of a bail condition/s by a young person.
The Minister for Community Services released this discussion paper on 14 February 2011. The Community Services Directorate undertook consultation on the discussion paper during March and April 2011 and the Minister for Community Services hosted a roundtable meeting. In spite of the recognition that this is the best course of action, there has been little action taken.
Until recently, and in contrast to other Australian jurisdictions, the ACT did not have specific bail assessment and support programs. The recent introduction of the after-hours bail support service has now provided children, families, police and community service providers with a possible alternative to short periods of remand based on breaches of bail conditions. It provides a service for young people who are at risk of being remanded in custody, to assist them to remain in the community. Whilst the after-hours bail service has been created and is working as best it can within its scope, it can only do so much to address a very common issue in relation to bail breaches for children, namely, safe and secure accommodation. The lack of any real increase in crisis accommodation beds highlights the need for more practical action to be taken.
On 29 July 2011 the ACT Human Rights Commission presented to the Attorney-General its report into Bimberi and the broader youth justice system. The Human Rights Commission’s report included positive or promising practice examples, concerns and research and presented ways to improve the system, with many clear recommendations. The report highlighted the fact that for many young people bail conditions were often unmanageable and had led to greater and early involvement with the justice system. It was also concerning that short periods of remand had
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