Tuesday, 13 August 2024

Questions without notice and ministers statements

Victims of crime

Georgie CROZIER (Southern Metropolitan) (12:05): (605) My question is to the Attorney-General. Attorney, the Lawyer X scandal has led to wrongful convictions being overturned and a royal commission exposing serious misconduct. So I ask: how do you justify blocking compensation claims for victims?

Jaclyn SYMES (Northern Victoria – Attorney-General, Minister for Emergency Services) (12:06): I thank Ms Crozier for her question. As I have announced today, it is the government’s intention to bring a piece of legislation for the Parliament’s consideration which is all about bringing a very dark chapter in the legal system’s history to a close as much as possible. The royal commission, which was brought about by the Labor government, referred inappropriate behaviour and referred the misuse of police informants to an inquiry that was very thorough and very expensive and determined a series of recommendations that we have been systematically implementing. We do not want this type of behaviour to happen again.

It has been an incredibly expensive endeavour. We had the royal commission. We have the implementation monitor Sir David Carruthers and the good work that he is doing in helping to guide those recommendations. We had the special investigator do their work to wrap up the further work that the royal commission asked to be done and to be referred to the DPP in relation to those matters. It is the government’s contention – and I hope to receive support from non-government members – that taxpayers have paid enough. I want to bring a close to the expense of this saga. I think that, in the public interest, people want us spending money on hospitals and schools, and in that respect I look forward to –

Members interjecting.

Jaclyn SYMES: Those who seek to frustrate the passage of that bill this week obviously do not share the priorities of Victorians that I do.

Georgie CROZIER (Southern Metropolitan) (12:08): It just shows how chaotic and dysfunctional this government is. Attorney, given the actions the government is taking to strip away the rights of victims of government misconduct, can you guarantee that no other class of Victorian, such as victims of historical child sexual abuse in government schools, will also have their rights taken away?

Jaclyn SYMES (Northern Victoria – Attorney-General, Minister for Emergency Services) (12:08): I will take the opportunity, Ms Crozier, to let you know that your Shadow Attorney-General has all of the information that pertains to the specific –

Members interjecting.

The PRESIDENT: Order! It is impossible to hear the minister’s answer. It is impossible. The question was asked. I think if you want to hear the answer, then maybe keep the noise down.

Jaclyn SYMES: The legislation was summarised a couple of days ago for the Shadow Attorney-General, as is my practice. If you would like to inform me of a different practice the opposition would like me to proceed with for my policy matters in the future, that is fine. He might like to table the correspondence he has received. You may like to receive that. But the way you have characterised your supplementary question – I want to confirm this is a very confined bill. And on what you are seeking to achieve in the way you have asked your question, it is a guarantee that this bill is confined to matters that were relevant to the royal commission into police informants.