Penny Wright (SA, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I would like to follow up on that, Attorney-General. Thank you for that. I guess what I am saying essentially then is that the inference drawn from unexplained wealth, because it is not explained, is that it is illegitimately acquired. The problem that I see is that by removing any possibility that a person may be able to use the assets that they have to defend themselves you are nobbling their ability to explain the wealth. You are saying that it is unexplained wealth, and it is going to remain unexplained wealth if a person does not have the ability to use their available means in a court of law to explain from where the wealth has been derived. That is the central concern that the Australian Greens have. What we are saying is not that there should always be a capacity to use restrained assets but that we should allow the possibility for a judicial officer who is apprised of all the evidence and information to make a call as to when it may be appropriate.