Richard Marles (Corio, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Defence) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to indicate Labor's support for the Combatting Child Sexual Exploitation Legislation Amendment Bill. I'm sure I speak for all in this place when I say that child sexual exploitation is absolutely abhorrent. Children are the most vulnerable members of our community and they deserve our protection and support. Labor is committed to protecting Australian children and has no tolerance for such heinous crimes.

The bill before the House is an omnibus criminal justice bill targeted at child sexual exploitation. Labor strongly supports the objectives of this bill, which implements several recommendations of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, including by creating an offence of failure to protect a child at risk of a child sexual abuse offence, creating an offence of failure to report a child sexual abuse offence and strengthening overseas persistent child sexual abuse laws.

Recommendation 33 of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse's criminal justice report stated that jurisdictions should introduce a criminal offence for failing to report child sexual abuse. To that end, the bill proposes a new offence for circumstances where a Commonwealth officer, who exercises care or supervision over children, knows of information that would lead a reasonable person to believe or suspect that another person has or will engage in conduct in relation to a child that constitutes a child sexual abuse offence and fails to disclose that information as soon as practicable to state police or the Australian Federal Police. Recommendation 36 in the royal commission's criminal justice report stated:

State and territory governments should introduce legislation to create a criminal offence of failure to protect a child within a relevant institution from a substantial risk of sexual abuse by an adult associated with the institution—

The bill thus proposes a new offence in the Criminal Code for a Commonwealth officer who negligently fails to reduce or remove the risk of a child under their care, supervision or authority being sexually abused if it is part of their actual or effective responsibilities as a Commonwealth officer to reduce or remove that risk.

The other measures contained in the bill form a suite of child protection measures which would criminalise the possession or control of child pornography material or child abuse material in the form of data that has been obtained or accessed using a carriage service; prevents certain dealings with childlike sex dolls and criminalise the possession of childlike sex dolls; improve the definition of forced marriage; and narrow the defence for overseas child sex offences based on a valid and genuine marriage between a defendant and a child.

I'm aware that some stakeholders raise concerns with aspects of the bill before the House. The Law Council expressed concern with regard to the application of the absolute liability for committing the offences created by the bill. As Labor's additional comments to the Senate inquiry noted, we accept the response of the Department of Home affairs and the Attorney-General's Department that application of absolute liability is 'appropriate to ensure compliance with the reporting regime'. In those same additional comments, Labor also indicated that it accepts the response of the two departments to a concern raised by the Law Council and by the Senate Scrutiny of Bills Committee regarding the bill's provision that an individual is not excused from failing to disclose information relating to child sexual abuse on grounds of possible self-incrimination.

Labor will watch the government's next steps closely, to ensure the bill is implemented as intended. Nonetheless, as I said at the start of my remarks, Labor supports this bill, and we strongly support its objective of protecting children from despicable acts of sexual exploitation.

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