Police and Justice Legislation Amendment (Miscellaneous) Bill 2016 Introduced In Victoria

Monday 22 August 2016 @ 12.42 p.m. | Crime | Legal Research

The Victorian Government has introduced the Police and Justice Legislation Amendment (Miscellaneous) Bill 2016 into the Legislative Assembly on 16 August 2016.  The Bill makes a number of changes to legislation, including amending the Victoria Police Act 2013 (“the VPA”) to improve the governance of the Police Registration and Services Board, and clarifying the liability scheme for police torts.  It also makes a number of minor and technical amendments, including amending references to CrimTrac since its merger into the Australian Crime Commission. 

Changes to the Police Registration and Services Board

The Police Registration and Services Board (the PRSB) is an independent statutory body established under the Victoria Police Act 2013.  It consists of three divisions: Review, Registration and Professional Standards Divisions.

The new Bill will insert a new section 154A(3) into the VPA:

“(3) The PRS Board must exclude from a statement of reasons published under subsection (1) information likely to lead to the identification of any of the following persons, unless the PRS Board considers the inclusion of the information to be in the public interest—

(a) a person who, during an investigation or inquiry under Part 7 or during the review, has made a complaint or raised a concern about the conduct of the applicant;

(b) a person who, during an investigation or inquiry under Part 7 or during the review, has given information about the conduct of the applicant;

(c) a person who has been adversely affected by the conduct of the applicant.”

The Bill also inserts new subsections 157(3A) and (3B) into the VPA, which allows for exceptions to be made to public hearings where the PRSB  finds an affected third party, such as a witness or victim, may be identified.

In her second reading speech, Minister for Police, Ms Neville, said the new provisions would enable greater support of victims, as recommended by the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commissioner’s report into Victoria Police.

The Bill will also allow participation in PRSB hearings by audio or audiovisual link, if it is considered to be appropriate by the Board.

The Bill also changes the way returning police officers are assessed by the PRSB.  Currently, former Victorian police officers who wish to rejoin are considered on their “aptitude and efficiency” to perform as a police officer at a specified rank.  This will change to a “capabilities” assessment.  According to Ms Neville, this change:

“will mean that consideration of a registration candidate's knowledge, skills, experience and attributes for registration will be further distinguished from the employment decisions of the chief commissioner.”

Clarification of Tort Law

The Bill does not amend the provisions currently in the VPA that deal with tortious acts of police officers, but instead inserts notes in the VPA and the Crown Proceedings Act 1958 (Vic) that direct people to the relevant sections in each act.  The notes clarify that police officers and protective services officers are not servants or agents of the Crown, and that tortious claims against the state relating to their actions should be brought under the VPA.

The Bill is currently being considered by the Legislative Assembly.

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Sources:

Police and Justice Legislation Amendment (Miscellaneous) Bill 2016, Explanatory Memorandum & Second Reading Speech - available from TimeBase LawOne

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