Second reading
Mr WAKELING (Ferntree Gully) – It gives me pleasure to rise to speak on the Crimes Amendment (Rape) Bill 2007. The purpose of this bill is to change the requirements relating to jury directions in cases of rape and to deal with the definition of the mental element in rape and other offences. More specifically, as outlined in the statement of compatibility, the bill will amend the Crimes Act 1958 in several ways.
This includes the restructuring of jury directions in relation to rape to improve the clarity of the provisions; adding a new jury direction to correctly focus the jury on awareness as the fault element in rape; adding a requirement that the judge direct the jury in relation to consent issues in relevant cases; amending the jury direction about belief in consent to provide more guidance on assessing the fault element in the offence and to strengthen the communicative model of consent; and amending the offence of rape and other sexual offences to which the issue of consent is relevant to provide that inadvertence or indifference to the issue of consent is an alternate fault element.
As has been put by previous speakers on this side of the house, the Liberal Party will not be opposing the provisions in this legislation that deal with strengthening areas around advice provided to juries during rape trials. It will be supporting those provisions in the bill.
As has also been mentioned, these amendments were drawn from recommendations in the 2004 Victorian Law Reform Commission report – although belatedly we would say. However, whilst the bill proposes certain changes to the Crimes Act, those changes in themselves do not necessarily indicate that the experience of victims in rape cases will improve. We are no closer to determining that there will be a more favourable outcome for victims. As has been stated, many Victorians have suffered heinous crimes committed against the person, particularly in relation to rape.
My concern is that the Brumby government, following on from the former Bracks government, needs to do more about tackling the important issue of reducing the level of crimes against the person and more specifically rape. One needs only to look at the Victorian violent crime trends over the course of this government and to see how the figures have risen under its watch. In the general area of violent crimes, the figures have increased from 35,922 to 48,854.
That is an increase of 36 per cent in violent crimes against the person throughout the state of Victoria. On anyone’s assessment that is appalling.
It is incumbent upon this government to not only deal with amendments pertaining to the way in which juries are instructed in rape cases but also to do more on the ground to prevent these cases from occurring in the first place. The figure for rape in the period 1999-2000 was 1170, and as of the last financial year that figure had increased to 1631. That is a dramatic increase in the incidence of rape – 39.4 per cent – under the watch of this government. I am sure members on this side of the house are appalled by those figures, and I am sure members on the other side of the house are equally appalled by the increase. It is incumbent upon this government to listen to the concerns of Victoria and to the concerns of victims and actually do more to reduce the level of crimes against the person and particularly crimes such as rape.
The crime statistics for the municipality of Knox in my electorate of Ferntree Gully – as the member for Scoresby will be aware – make it clear that crime in Knox is out of control. To see this one only has to look at the government's own figures, not Liberal Party figures. Did the number of crimes against the person in Knox go up? Of course it went up. It went up by 9 per cent – from 977 to 1065 offences.
That is an appalling outcome for Knox, and I call upon this government to do more to fix the situation. One needs only to look at the figures in relation to rape. Over the last financial year there was a 19.2 per cent increase in rape in the city of Knox. That is an horrendous outcome, and I call upon this government to do more.
I call upon the government to do one thing – that is, to deliver on its 1999 election promise, which was that it would deliver for the people of Rowville a 24-hour police station. The member for Scoresby would be clearly aware of this fact, and we have repeated it in this chamber on numerous occasions.
Mr Wells – Many times.
Mr WAKELING – On numerous occasions. We are not asking the government to do any more than simply deliver on what it promised. It promised this community and the people of Rowville that it would deliver a 24-hour police station.
The Rowville police station has locks – and it is important it has locks because the doors close at 10 o'clock at night. I can tell you one thing, Acting Speaker – –
The ACTING SPEAKER (Mr Stensholt) – Order! On the bill, please.
Mr WAKELING – Thank you, Acting Speaker. It is very important that we see a reduction in the incidence of rape, and it is important that the government does everything in its capacity to reduce the incidence of rape.
Mr Wells interjected.
Mr WAKELING – As the member rightly points out, that includes delivering the 24-hour police station in Rowville.
As has been mentioned, we support the variations to the Crimes Act with respect to advice to juries. We agree that those changes are important, but more needs to be done. Not only the
Liberal Party is saying that more needs to be done, but the community is saying that more needs to be done, because the statistics tell the truth. One only needs to look at the statistics to determine that this government is clearly failing when it comes to adequately dealing with crimes against the person.
I call upon the government to do more and to get its eye back on the job at hand, which is about delivering more police resources and ensuring that more is done to reduce crimes against the person not only within Knox but within the state of Victoria.
Source: http://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/downloadhansard/assembly.htm
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