Electronic monitoring
81. Mr Liam Staltari to the Attorney General:
I refer to the decision by the Commissioner of Corrective Services that corrections will not recommend or support the use of electronic monitoring in any location other than the Perth metropolitan area.
(1) Is the Attorney General aware of this decision, which was formally communicated to the Chief Magistrate, a District Court judge and the Commissioner for Victims of Crime?
(2) If yes, was the Attorney General briefed on this decision and, if so, by whom and when?
Dr Tony Buti replied:
(1)–(2) As the Minister for Police and also the Minister for Corrective Services stated, we now live in a much safer state as a result of the legislation that we passed last year. As the Minister for Corrective Services also mentioned, there has been subsequent advice from the Commissioner of Corrective Services to the various judicial branches.
In regard to the legislation, members opposite have to understand—I think this is something they have forgotten—the Bail Act remains in place for the process. Therefore, the judicial officer has to determine whether the person standing in front of them should be granted bail, irrelevant to electronic monitoring. They have to determine whether the person should be granted bail and the conditions of bail. If they are there for a domestic violence offence, it is mandated that electronic monitoring will take place, but that is not the reason why bail would be granted. Bail would be granted because the judicial officer will have determined that the person in front of them should be granted bail with certain conditions, and it would then be mandated that electronic monitoring takes place.
Mr Basil Zempilas interjected.
The Speaker: Leader of the Opposition!
Dr Tony Buti: As has already been stated, monitoring takes place across the state 24/7 by Department of Justice staff alongside the Western Australia Police Force at the State Operations Command Centre.
Mr Basil Zempilas interjected.
The Speaker: Leader of the Opposition, please desist from your interjections. This is your question.
Dr Tony Buti: When there are technical issues with electronic monitoring, such as faulty equipment, there is a 24/7 response in the Perth metro area and also regional WA. The laws also allow police to arrest for a breach without a warrant. This government has provided $42 million to the Department of Justice and the Western Australia Police Force to implement the act. The reforms that were made last year to the Bail Act under the Family Violence Legislation Reform Act make Western Australia a safer place today than it had been prior to that. But opposition members have to remember, which is something they seem to forget, the granting of bail is not dependent on electronic monitoring; that is an additional condition that is imposed on certain alleged offenders, such as domestic violence offenders.
82. Mr Liam Staltari to the Attorney General:
I have a supplementary question.
I thank the Attorney General for his answer. Given that the Attorney General seems to be aware of the decision, why did he not include it in the ministerial statement provided earlier this week?
Dr Tony Buti replied:
What decision? The decision whether to grant bail is made by the judicial officers, not the Commissioner of Corrective Services.
