Scott Ryan (Victoria, Liberal Party, Special Minister of State) Share this | Hansard source

I would like to begin by acknowledging Sonya Ryan in the chamber for all the work she has done in the shadow of such a tragedy that has been outlined by my colleagues in this chamber today. This is every parent's nightmare scenario. Those of us who have become parents recently probably think about these things more than we did a decade ago. It also reflects the changing world we live in—a world where our children have access to or can be accessed by services and can access things that simply were not available when people even my age, in their early 40s, were children. Home is not always the place where most children—never all, of course—could be protected, because it can be a place where bullying, isolation and even these tragic sorts of events happen. On behalf of the government I acknowledge the work you have done, Sonya, as I said, in the shadow of an unimaginable, horrific tragedy. I would also like to thank my Senate colleagues and members in the other place for their contributions to the debate on this bill.

This bill introduces a tough new offence for adults who use a carriage service to prepare or plan to cause harm to a child, engage in sexual activity with a child or procure a child to engage in sexual activity. Importantly, the new offence will cover adults who misrepresent their age online as part of a plan to harm a child. As Senator Xenophon has said, there is really no excuse for that; it is impossible to imagine one. This offence will complement existing online child sex offences for preparatory conduct, including grooming or procuring a child. The bill takes this protection one step further, ensuring that those who use a carriage service to plan or prepare to harm children are also captured by the criminal justice system. Evolving technology and the anonymity of the internet provide unprecedented opportunities for online predators to harm and exploit children. This offence carries a maximum penalty of 10 years of imprisonment. This will hopefully serve as a significant deterrent to predators who would seek to harm children. This offence will allow law enforcement to take action against online predators sooner and with greater consequence, thereby improving our capacity as a society and as a government to protect our children.

This bill continues the government's proactive approach to legislative amendment in light of rapid technological change. Following its introduction on 30 March this year, the bill was referred to the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee for inquiry and report. The committee handed down its report earlier this month, on 13 June, with one recommendation: that the bill be passed by the Senate. On behalf of the government and, I am sure, on behalf of all senators, I would like to extend our thanks to the committee for its concise and fast work. I would like to thank all those who have made contributions to the inquiry and to this debate in the parliament, and, of course, most of all, Sonya Ryan for her tireless work in seeing the passage of this important step in better protecting our children.

Question agreed to.

Bill read a second time.