George Christensen (Dawson, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

On behalf of the Standing Committee on Social Policy and Legal Affairs, I present the committee's report, entitled Reviewing troubled waters: consideration of the government response to the 2012 inquiry into arrangements surrounding crimes at sea, together with the minutes and proceedings. International cruises are an increasingly popular holiday choice for Australians of all ages. In most cases, a cruise holiday will be a welcome escape from the pressures of everyday life. However, when accidents or crimes occur on board a cruise vessel, they can be very difficult for victims and law enforcement agencies to cope with.

This is not the first time the Social Policy and Legal Affairs Committee has reported on crimes at sea. In June 2013 the committee tabled a report, entitled Troubled waters , which investigated the arrangements surrounding crimes committed at sea. The report arose from a coronial inquest into the death of Ms Diana Brimble on board a P&O cruise ship in 2002. The Troubled waters report found that cruise safety had improved a great deal in the years since Ms Brimble's tragic death, but it also identified a number of areas in which safety practices could be improved. The report made 11 recommendations directed at preventing crimes at sea, caring for victims and making it easier for law enforcement agencies to investigate crimes at sea involving Australian citizens.

In November 2014, the committee received the Australian government's response to the Troubled waters report. The government had agreed to only two of the committee's 11 recommendations. Three were not agreed to, a further two were noted and four were agreed to in principle. The key recommendations that the government did not agree to were recommendation 1, which was on the collection and publication of independent statistics on crimes at sea, and recommendations 7,8 and 9, which would have made it a condition of entry to Australian ports that cruise operators meet minimum standards in responding to alleged crimes at sea, in crime scene management and in their reporting of alleged crimes at sea.

The committee reviewed the government response and subsequently held a private hearing so that the government could provide more information on that response. The hearing was also attended by representatives of the cruise ship industry and by Mr Mark Brimble on behalf of the International Cruise Victims Association. After careful consideration, the committee continues to hold concerns about the adequacy of the government response to its recommendations. We maintain that the collection and publication of statistical information on crimes at sea is a necessity. The cruise industry argued that cruise ships are comparatively safe, but there should be a way to verify those claims independently. Reliable and independent information is critical to the formulation of good policy and Australians should have access to accurate, independent information on the risks of travel.

With that in mind, the committee has recommended, once again, that the government take all necessary steps to ensure that information on crimes at sea is properly reported so that accurate statistics can be maintained and published. It is also critical that cruise lines operating in Australia extend appropriate care to victims of crime and that they maintain proper crime scene management and reporting practices. This will ensure that victims do not suffer more than they should and that crimes at sea can be prosecuted where possible.

At present, there is nothing to compel cruise lines to enact these measures other, I suppose, than fear of a social media backlash. But Twitter is not a form of accountability. There should be legal standards in relation to these matters and cruise lines should be denied access to our ports if they consistently put Australians at risk by failing to meet those standards.

This committee has been urging the industry to improve its safety practices for a number of years. We do note that industry practice has improved. But there continue to be reports about incidents which are made worse because safety technologies, such as man overboard systems, are not in place. So more does need to be done and we ask the government to act to ensure that Australians have the information they need to make informed choices about cruise safety and to ensure that cruise lines meet responsible safety and reporting standards.

We do not want to demonise the cruise ship industry. We do recognise the substantial contribution it makes to the tourism dollar. But we do say that more needs to be done to regulate the industry to make it safer for everyone and to give that greater standard of accountability that the cruise ship industry can then tout as well.

Report made a parliamentary paper in accordance with standing order 39(e).

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