Jason Clare (Blaxland, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Regional Services, Territories and Local Government) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the Norfolk Island Amendment (Supreme Court) Bill 2020 and to make clear that Labor will be supporting this legislation. The bill amends the Norfolk Island Act 1979 and it builds on changes to the act that were made in 2018 which allow the Supreme Court to sit in a state or territory other than Norfolk Island when it's exercising its civil or criminal jurisdiction on matters concerning Norfolk Island.

Due to Norfolk Island's small population and remote location, the 2018 amendments reflected the view that in some cases the best interests of justice may be served by holding a criminal trial away from the island itself. These 2018 amendments were modelled on similar provisions that were created for Christmas Island back in 1987. They were designed to ensure community confidence in the integrity of the justice system on Norfolk Island.

The bill before us is largely technical in nature, and it makes further provision to ensure the smooth carriage of justice between Norfolk Island and the broader Australian legal system. Specifically, it makes technical changes to amend the definition of 'host jurisdiction' in the provisions authorising off-island sittings of the Norfolk Island Supreme Court in order to remove any doubt that the Supreme Court may exercise its criminal or civil jurisdiction in a state or territory.

The bill also clarifies the basis on which travel allowances are determined for judges of the Supreme Court in order to avoid any ambiguity, and to codify and reflect the existing practices by which judges receive such allowances. Judges of the Supreme Court currently receive travel allowances as determined by the Remuneration Tribunal. This amendment will ensure judges are fairly remunerated in the conduct of their duties. The provisions of this bill also seek to remove any doubt that the Supreme Court may exercise its criminal or civil jurisdiction in a state in the absence of an arrangement between the Commonwealth and the state government or authority where no powers, duties or functions are conferred or imposed upon a state officer.

In preparing for this debate, the Labor Party consulted with the Law Council of Australia on this legislation. They have raised concerns about the removal of section 60Q(6), which provides that the fees and allowances of witnesses who appear in civil proceedings held in a host jurisdiction must be paid by the Commonwealth. The government argues in the explanatory memorandum to this bill that it's not appropriate for the Commonwealth to pay these fees in civil matters, where, unlike in criminal matters, the parties concerned are normally responsible for witness expenses. This is a reasonable argument, but it's important for the government to keep an eye on this to make sure that it does not result in parties to civil proceedings incurring unreasonable additional costs, thus creating a barrier for Norfolk Islanders who wish to access civil proceedings.

I'd like to thank my colleague and friend the member for Lingiari, Warren Snowdon, who will follow me in this debate and who is the shadow assistant minister for external territories, for all his work and effort during Norfolk Island's transition to Commonwealth governance. The member for Lingiari is an advocate for the people of Norfolk now as well as prior to the end of self-governance. I think the member for Bean will join us in this debate as well. He has also been, and is, a fantastic representative for the people of Norfolk Island. As the local member since the 2019 election, the member for Bean has always pushed to ensure that the needs of the people of Norfolk have not been forgotten despite their remote location. The member for Bean has been very vocal in his support for the people of Norfolk and works hard to represent the needs of this remote community.

The changes in this bill form an important part of the work that this parliament has been doing to further improve the operation of Norfolk Island administration for the benefit of the community as a whole. I'm very pleased to commend the bill to the House.

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