Police Integrity Commission Amendment (Records) Act 1998 (NSW)

New South Wales

Police Integrity Commission

Amendment (Records) Act 1998

No 21

Contents

Page

1	Name of Act	2
2	Commencement	2
3	Amendment of Police Integrity Commission Act 1996
No 28	2

Schedule 1 Amendments 3

New South Wales

Police Integrity Commission

Amendment (Records) Act 1998

No 21

Act No 21, 1998

An Act to amend the Police Integrity Commission Act 1996 in relation to the transfer to the Police Integrity Commission of certain records formerly held by the Police Royal Commission, so as to ensure that the Police Integrity Commission is able to initiate or continue investigations into matters referred to in those records or to refer any such matters to other agencies; to validate certain matters; and for other purposes. [Assented to 3 June 1998]

Section 1 Police Integrity Commission Amendment (Records) Act 1998 No 21

The Legislature of New South Wales enacts:

1 Name of Act

This Act is the Police Integrity Commission Amendment

(Records) Act 1998.

2 Commencement

This Act commences on the date of assent.

3     Amendment of Police Integrity Commission Act 1996 No 28

The Police Integrity Commission Act 1996 is amended as set out in Schedule 1.

Police Integrity Commission Amendment (Records) Act 1998 No 21

Amendments Schedule 1

Schedule 1 Amendments

(Section 3 )

[1]        Section 13 Principal functions

Insert “ , and to deal with records of the Police Royal Commission as provided by this Act” after “ this Act” in section 13 (1) (d).

[2]        Schedule 3 Savings, transitional and other provisions (Part 2 Continuity with Police Royal Commission)

Insert after clause 2A:

2B Records of Police Royal Commission

(1)	In this clause:
dissemination of a record includes permanently parting with the possession of the record itself or any part of it.
possession includes custody or control.
record includes any document or thing (including a videotape audiotape, computer disk, computer tape, computer program, or other electronic material), and includes any information contained in it.
transferred record means any record of the Police Royal Commission that was in the possession of the Police Royal Commissioner or any officer of the Police Royal Commission and that has come, whether before or after the commencement of this clause, into the possession of the PIC, but does not include a record or class of records that is prescribed by the regulations as excluded from this clause.
(2)	A transferred record is taken at all times and for all purposes to have come lawfully into the possession of the PIC, and the possession of the record by the PIC is taken for all purposes to be lawful.

Police integrity Commission Amendment (Records) Act 1998 No 21

Schedule 1 Amendments

The dissemination of a transferred record, or of information in a transferred record, in purported compliance with a direction of the Police Royal Commissioner under section 30 of the Royal Commission (Police Service) Act 1994 before the commencement of this clause is taken at all times and for all purposes to be lawful.

Section 56 applies and is taken always to have applied to information in a transferred record as if the information had been acquired by reason of, or in the course of, the exercise of functions under this Act.

Accordingly, and without affecting subclause (3), information comprised in a transferred record is capable, and is taken always to have been capable, of being divulged under section 56 as if the information had been acquired by reason of, or in the course of, the exercise of functions under this Act, and any such divulging of information is taken for all purposes to be lawful.

No civil or criminal liability attaches to, or is taken to have attached to, any person in connection with any act or omission involved in:

(a)	the giving of such possession to the PIC, or the receiving of such possession by the PIC, as referred to in subclause (2), or
(b)	the dissemination of such a transferred record, as referred to in subclause (3), or
(c)	the divulging of such information, as referred to in subclause (5).

This clause has effect despite section 30 of the Royal

Commission (Police Service) Act 1994.

In the application of section 56 (3) to a transferred record, a reference in that subsection to a prosecution or disciplinary proceedings is taken to include a reference to a prosecution or disciplinary proceedings instituted, whether before or after the commencement of this clause, as a result of the Police Royal Commission's inquiry (as referred to in section 30 (3) of the Royal Commission(Police Service) Act 1994).

Police Integrity Commission Amendment (Records) Act 1998 No 21

Amendments Schedule 1

Without affecting the generality of section 56 of this Act and section 30 of the Royal Commission (Police Service) Act 1994, it is expressly declared that a reference in those sections and in this clause to the divulging of information, so far as the reference is applicable to information comprising or contained in a transferred record, includes and is taken always to have included a reference to the dissemination of the record.

Nothing in this clause:

(a)	prevents a transferred record from being disposed of or otherwise dealt with in any manner that would be available if this clause had not been enacted, or
(b)	affects the operation of the Telecommunications (Interception) (New South Wales) Act 1987.

[Minister's second reading speech made in—

Legislative Assembly on 6 May 1998 Legislative Council on 26 May 1998]