Jason Falinski (Mackellar, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the Crimes Legislation Amendment (Sexual Crimes Against Children and Community Protection Measures) Bill 2017. Imagine that you or a loved one had been subjected to child abuse. Wouldn't you want to know that the law was on your side? Our outdated rules have failed to recognise the heinous and disgusting nature of this vile crime and the seriousness with which we must combat this scourge. Whilst past administrations have failed to give the subject the attention and amendment required, I'm glad to support a government that values the protection and wellbeing of the next generation.

This bill targets all aspects of the child sex offender cycle by strengthening measures at the time of charging, bail, sentencing and upon release. Our reforms will criminalise emerging forms of child sexual abuse, strengthen community protection from child sex offenders and ensure that sentencing of child sex offenders reflects the gravity of this type of offending. They will ensure that terminology used in Commonwealth legislation reflects the seriousness of child sexual abuse and improves protections for vulnerable witnesses. It is the largest such change to the Criminal Code in decades, and seeks to provide genuine deterrence, punishment and protection.

At the moment legislation is too weak and our criminal justice system has arguably not given sufficient weight in its sentencing for these crimes—41.3 per cent of child abusers never serve time in prison. Just think about that for a moment: over one-third of child abusers never face the justice that they deserve. And, of the preposterously low portion of offenders that are imprisoned, the average sentence for carrying out one of society's most unspeakable evils is a paltry six months.

We are seeking to protect our communities from some of the most horrendous ills imaginable by shifting courts towards a preference for imprisonment rather than mere suspended sentences. We can maximise safeguards against these criminals, ensuring that the most dangerous predators are imprisoned and kept away from those who they seek to harm. In the same vein, the introduction of mandatory minimum sentences will go a long way to alleviating the institutional biases and embarrassing weaknesses inherent within a criminal justice system that has been rendered toothless by the turn-the-other-cheek attitude of previous regimes. For all the naysayers that have prejudged this bill, based on nothing more than their preconceptions of mandatory sentencing, I say this: this law will target those who attempt to do harm to the most vulnerable members of our society, ensuring that they face the penalties that they deserve. What possible objection could members have to that? By spelling out clearly to the courts what is and is not within their remit, this parliament can reinforce its power to mandate the law and its enforcement. This issue is just too important to be left to the whim of a judiciary that has been perceived as insufficiently harsh to such criminals.

We would also like to see change to the mindset of the courts to better align it to contemporary Australian society and prioritise civil safety, giving greater balance to victims and the community over the rehabilitation of convicted criminals. Importantly, this bill prevents judges from using an offender's standing in the community to discount their sentence, if it was used to assist in the commission of the offence. In cases involving the worst offenders, we would like to see the courts make it more difficult to release defendants on bail. Similarly, by mandating that courts state and record their reasons for releasing suspects on bail, we can finally begin to stand up for ourselves, to strengthen our resolve against these criminals and better protect our children. We also are making it compulsory for the courts to have regard to the objective of rehabilitating offenders, including setting appropriate treatment and supervision conditions. It's an aspect we cannot overlook if we want to lastingly reduce the number of offences committed against children every year.

We are not, as I'm sure some of the opposition would dreamily machinate, shifting towards dictatorial tendencies. This law does not mark a shift in civil liberties. We will continue to maintain the principle of innocence until proven guilty. This is a tenet of our free liberal society and one that we will not change. Rather, what this bill does is enhance our freedoms. We should be confident that our law enforcement and justice systems can securely guarantee that our loved ones won't be harassed, hurt or abused. Surely we should have the freedom to live without fear that child abusers, having been given free rein by the courts to roam free, strike again, harming our children.

In yet another example of utter contempt for victims, unscrupulous defendants have been allowed to unnecessarily and inappropriately harass their victims through harsh and brutal cross-examinations. By making it simpler to pre-record testimony, allowing such video recordings to be used as evidence and introducing greater restrictions on the scope of cross-examination, this government aims to right the wrongs of the previous government's ham-fisted approach to the sensitivities of victims—that is, our children.

Four years ago in the UK, 48-year-old Frances Andrade took her own life after being subjected to hostile, aggravating and downright selfish cross-examination by the defendant's legal team. She was forced to relive, in public, over and over again, the horrors of her abuse as a 14-year-old. The subsequent inquest blamed the needlessly aggressive hostilities as a key reason behind her suicide. No-one wants to see that happen here. Not a single parent wants to see their child subjected to such extended, repeated and unnecessary torment when they are doing the right thing—speaking out and making sure their attacker can never do this to someone else. So I beseech those opposite to get on board, to stop dragging their feet, because we can make a difference.

With this bill we also are amending legislation to bring criminal legislation up to date with the digital age. With such dramatic changes in the way we interact and communicate, particularly when technology is becoming ever more complex and the internet more available, it is time to update our child-protection legislation. Unfortunately, paedophiles are constantly seeking new ways to exploit emerging technology to commit their crimes. Where the vast majority of us see wonderful opportunities to improve our lives, a sickening minority have harnessed the internet and the dark web to enact their sickening and deplorable fantasies. They rob our children of their childhoods, of their innocence and of their sense of security. We must crack down on the loopholes that have helped and will continue to help abusers get off scot-free.

Internet carriers have their role to play in monitoring and reporting such highly offensive material. Failure to act, to report on abuses and remove any material, will carry greater financial penalties than ever before, because we are serious. Everyone must be vigilant and everyone carries a responsibility to speak out. This will greatly aid law enforcement agencies in their efforts to monitor the ever-expanding vastness of the internet and its 24/7 nature.

Our desire to tackle this issue and protect our most vulnerable is nothing new. This bill reflects the Turnbull government's continuing commitment to protecting our children and builds upon previous child protection legislation passed in this very parliament. In June this year, with the Passports Legislation Amendment (Overseas Travel by Child Sex Offenders) Bill 2017, the Turnbull government stopped child sex offenders from travelling overseas to sexually abuse children in more vulnerable parts of the world. We also introduced Carly's law to target online predators preparing or planning to cause harm to procure or engage in sexual activity with a child, increasing police powers to intervene. This government is steadfast in its commitment to the principle that all children should be safe from abuse wherever they happen to be born and, most certainly, in Australia.

This morning I saw bipartisan support at the launch of the Polished Man campaign by my colleagues the member for Kooyong and the member for Fisher, who were inadvertently joined by our Prime Minister, the member for Wentworth. The will is there. The will is bipartisan. We can all agree that any violence, including sexual violence, against our children is despicable and must end. Let's end it now and let's end it together.

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