Chris Ellison (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Justice and Customs) Share this | Hansard source

But, of course, Senator Ludwig is interjecting and does not believe that. He does not believe that the Australian public should have input into penalties for criminal law. This is something about which we are getting a clear message from the Australian community: they want appropriate penalties for serious crime. That is something that the states and territories might be refusing to deal with but we at the Commonwealth level are not. That is precisely what this is about.

We are also considering the Law Reform Commission’s inquiry regarding a guide to framing Commonwealth offences, which is dealing with civil and administrative penalties. That, too, feeds into the overall approach that we have regarding the adequacy of laws in relation to criminal jurisdiction at the Commonwealth level. Whilst, as I say, the states and territories deal with offences which largely relate to the person and property, we at the Commonwealth level have a responsibility to make sure that our penalties meet community expectations for serious crimes such as drug trafficking, sex trafficking, child sex tourism, child pornography on the internet, and a range of other very serious offences on which Australians would expect us, as a responsible government, to take appropriate action. That is what this is about.