Queensland Announces Organised Crime Inquiry
Monday 30 March 2015 @ 9.24 a.m. | Crime
In a recent media release (23 February 2015), the Queensland Attorney-General, Yvette D-Ath, announced a Commission of Inquiry into Queensland's Vicious Lawless Association Disestablishment (VLAD) Act, or so-called anti-bikie legislation. This comes as part of Labour's inquiry into Organised Crime in Queensland.
Background to the Inquiry
Yvette D'Ath says the new Labor government's top legal priorities would be holding the inquiry into organised crime and having a high-level taskforce review the previous government's anti-bikie laws.
As of 27 March 2015, leading criminal barrister Michael Byrne will head the Queensland government's commission of inquiry into organised crime. The Commission of Inquiry will check the adequacy and appropriate nature of responses to organised crime, the co-operation between Queensland and other law enforcement agencies and the strength of current laws. The inquiry will also investigate and report on likely future trends in organised crime.
Ms D'Ath said the inquiry would have a broader focus than just criminal motorcycle gangs:
"One of flaws with bikie laws - it was looking at criminal bikie organisation, where we know and the evidence we have is that organised crime is much, much broader than that..There are so many different links when you talk about organised crime ... that we want to look at it in a holistic way."
Ms D'Ath said the inquiry would have the full powers of a royal commission and will start on 1 May 2015. It is due to report its findings on 30 October 2015.
Review of the VLAD Laws
Labor has also said it would set up a task force consisting of members of the Law Society, Bar Association and Queensland Police Union to review the Liberal National Party's controversial VLAD legislation. This would bring forward the mandated review of the laws from 2016.
Ms D'Ath said:
"The commission of inquiry will operate for six months. It will run in parallel with the task force, which has until December to draft up the new laws as far as amendments to the VLAD laws...We have to send a very clear message to criminal organisations and criminal bikie organisations that it's not a free for all; these laws are there, they will be enforced."
Ms D'Ath said the task force reviewing the VLAD laws would properly consult in developing any changes to legislation:
"That's why we're establishing a high-level task force which will by December of this year, review these legislations and make recommendations to the Government as to what those replacement laws will be...Until such time as those new laws are introduced and passed ... the existing laws will remain in place...There are elements we do not agree with and the community do not agree with ... but we need to provide consistency and certainty for police on the front line enforcing these laws and we have to send a very clear message to criminal organisations and criminal bikie organisations that it's not a free for all; these laws are there, they will be enforced...But we will be looking at these laws to actually create better laws. In fact, we will recommend to the task force that they look at developing a new chapter to go into the criminal code that actually has higher penalties so the most serious offences of organised crime, attracting up to a life sentence."
Reaction to Inquiry Announcement
University of Queensland law academic Andreas Schloenhardt has said:
“One of the main difficulties in combating organised crime is the fact that there is next to no reliable information or academic studies about the causes, dimensions, and spread of organised crime in Queensland, especially of gangs and individuals not associated with outlaw motorcycle gangs...While it would be preferable to repeal the Vicious Lawless Association Disestablishment (VLAD) Act and other anti-biker gang laws altogether, it is welcome to see the Government reviewing the laws...These laws have been widely criticised for their vagueness and breadth, for infringing basic human rights and for violating basic principles of criminal justice...While some violence relating to outlaw motorcycle gangs has ceased, much of the problem has been pushed further underground and new gangs and individuals have replaced those that were previously in the spotlight.”
The Queensland Government's announcement has been made at the same time that the Victorian Opposition has called for the Government to toughen anti-bikie laws in Victoria, after Senior police raised concerns tough bikie laws in Queensland, New South Wales and South Australia had led to an influx of bikies in Victoria.
Assistant Commissioner Fontana of Victoria Police said a national approach would help tackle the problem:
"When we look at the clamp down in other jurisdictions on legislation, it really says that we probably need to think about having a nationally consistent approach...If we've got different levels of legislation in each jurisdiction, we do have that risk of displacement of these groups."
Late last year, Premier of Victoria Mr Andrews called for a national response, on top of a national anti-bikie gang taskforce that began operating in September 2014. Mr Andrews said state laws needed to become more unified as "many of these crime outfits, they don't respect state borders."
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