NATIONAL RESPONSE TO COMBAT ORGANISED CRIME
Joint Media Release
Attorney-General
The Hon Robert McClelland MP
Minister for Home Affairs
The Hon Bob Debus
16 April 2009
The Standing Committee of Attorneys-General (SCAG) today agreed to develop a comprehensive national response to combat organised crime.
Organised crime operates on a national scale and is estimated to cost Australia over $10 billion every year.
A nationally consistent response is essential to ensure there can be no safe havens for organised crime groups.
As part of this approach, State and Territory Attorneys-General agreed to consider key common features to be contained in legislation to combat organised crime activities.
In addition, the Commonwealth indicated it will consider a range of legislative measures to facilitate this national response. This may include facilitating greater access of telecommunications interception powers for covert investigations, strengthening the criminal asset confiscation regime and enhancing the cross-border investigative powers of law enforcement authorities.
Ministers also agreed to develop arrangements to ensure cooperation between each jurisdiction in relation to organised criminal activity in any jurisdiction.
In December 2008, the Prime Minister presented the Government’s National Security Statement and underlined organised crime as a growing and continuing national challenge.
Following this, the Commonwealth is developing an Organised Crime Strategic Framework to enhance the understanding of threats posed by organised crime and improve the capacity to effectively prevent, disrupt, investigate and prosecute organised crime activities.
Ministers were today updated on this Framework following a briefing from Australia’s peak organised crime agency, the Australian Crime Commission.
The Rudd Government remains committed to doing everything possible in cooperation with the States and Territories to tackle organised crime in Australia.
The SCAG decision on organised crime is attached.
Media Contact:
Adam Siddique (McClelland) 0407 473 630
Samantha Wills (Debus) 0448 721 372
SCAG Resolutions for a national response to combat organised crime
Ministers:
- Agreed that organised crime is a national issue requiring a nationally coordinated response by all jurisdictions.
- Noted that the Commonwealth is developing an Organised Crime Strategic Framework, with mechanisms to engage the States and Territories, for agreement by the Commonwealth Government by mid-2009. The purpose of the Framework is to enhance understanding of the threats from organised crime; improve our capacity to effectively prevent, disrupt, investigate and prosecute organised crime activities; and strengthen information sharing and interoperability.
- Noted that the Commonwealth will consider the introduction of a package of legislative reforms to combat organised crime including measures to:
- strengthen criminal asset confiscation, including unexplained wealth provisions
- to the extent practical and effective, and having regard to constitutional power, consorting or similar provisions that prevent a person associating with another person who is involved in organised criminal activity as an individual or through an organisation
- enhance police powers to investigate organised crime, including model crossborder investigative powers for controlled operations, assumed identities and witness identity protection
- facilitate greater access to telecommunication interception for criminal organisation offences, and
- address the joint commission of criminal offences.
- Noted that the Ministerial Council on Corporations is considering the issue of director disqualification under the Corporations Act 2001 in relation to organised criminal activity.
- Agreed to the States and Territories considering the introduction of the following legislative measures to combat organised crime where they have not already done so:
- Measures that permit coercive questioning of individuals to assist with the investigation of organised crime offences
- Consorting or similar provisions that prevent a person associating with another person who is involved in organised criminal activity as an individual or through an organisation
- Measures that enable police to engage in controlled operations
- Measures that enable the use of assumed identities to facilitate investigations and intelligence gathering
- Legislation to permit the use of surveillance devices for the purposes of investigating serious and organised crime
- Witness protection legislation
- Asset confiscation legislation to enable a court to restrain and forfeit a person’s assets where they are tainted
- Model cross-border investigative powers for controlled operations, assumed identities, witness identity protection and surveillance devices.
- Agreed to arrangements to ensure cooperation between each jurisdiction in relation to organised criminal activity in any particular jurisdiction.
- Agreed to coordinate law enforcement efforts through developing shared priorities including improving interoperability, facilitating improved information and intelligence sharing and coordinating investigative and target development activities.
- Agreed to establish a SCAG Officers’ Group to undertake work on legislative, interoperability and information sharing measures in consultation with MCPEMP officers and report back to SCAG as soon as possible.
