Public Order (Protection of Persons and Property) Amendment Regulations 2001 (No. 1) 2001 No. 10
EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
STATUTORY RULES 2001 No. 10
Issued by the Authority of the Attorney-General
Public Order (Protection of Persons and Property) Act 1971
Public Order (Protection of Persons and Property) Amendment Regulations 2001 (No. 1)
Section 13H of the Public Order (Protection of Persons and Property) Act 1971 (the Act) provides that the Governor-General may make regulations prescribing matters for the purposes of Part IIA of the Act. Part IIA of the Act provides for the protective security of prescribed federal courts, tribunals and other bodies having the power under Commonwealth law to require the production of documents or the answering of questions. In particular, the Governor-General may make regulations providing for dealing with information given by a person in response to a requirement made under Part IIA.
The Public Order (Protection of Persons and Property) Regulations 1999 (the 1999 Regulations) prescribe the courts to which Part IIA of the Act applies. These courts are the Federal Court of Australia, the Family Court of Australia, the Administrative Appeals Tribunal and the National Crime Authority (regulation 4). The operation of the scheme, as described below, has been extended to the newly created Federal Magistrates Court which was created by the Federal Magistrates Act 1999. This has been done by adding the Federal Magistrates Court to the list of courts in regulation 4 of the 1999 Regulations.
Part 11A of the Act provides for court administrators to authorise officers who may, when it is in the interests of security to do so, require persons to provide their name, address of their place of residence, their reason for being on court premises and evidence of their identity. Failing to provide such information on request or providing false information, without reasonable excuse, is an offence. The Act also provides authorised officers with the power to search a person, either by frisk or screen search, to search a person's personal effects or to have the person deposit their personal effects when it is in the interests of security to do so. Where weapons are found during such searches authorised officers may take and retain possession of the items for such time as is necessary for the purposes of Part IIA. Where a person has refused to comply with these requirements or has no proper reason for being on court premises an authorised officer may direct them to leave the court premises.
The 1999 Regulations provide a scheme for the identification of authorised officers (regulation 5) and provide procedures to be followed in the event of a frisk search being conducted on court premises (regulation 6). Each authorised officer, who is not a police officer, is to be issued with an identity card, which is to display a recent photograph and state that the holder of the card is an authorised officer for the purposes of Part IIA of the Act. If a frisk search is to be conducted the authorised officer must inform the person to be searched of the procedure that is to occur and the effect of the provisions of subsections 13D(4), (5) and (7) of the Act which set out certain safeguards.
Regulation 8 of the 1999 Regulations provides that, where information is obtained under section 13C of the Act, it may be disclosed to the Australian Protective Service, the Australian Federal Police or the police force of a State or Territory. An authorised officer may also disclose the information to specified officers of the court of which he or she is an authorised officer. An authorised officer will only be able to disclose the information if the officer believes on reasonable grounds that it is necessary in the interests of security to do so.
Details of the Regulations are in the attachment.
The Regulations commence on gazettal.
Attachment
NOTES ON THE REGULATIONS
The details of the regulations are as follows:
Regulation 1 - Name of regulations
Regulation 1 cites the Regulations as the Public Order (Protection of Persons and Property) Amendment Regulations 2001 (No. 1).
Regulation 2 - Commencement
The Regulations commence on gazettal.
Regulation 3 - Amendment of Public Order (Protection of Persons and Property) Regulations 1999.
Regulation 3 provides that Schedule 1 amends the 1999 Regulations.
Item 1 of Schedule 1
Item 1 inserts a new paragraph (ba) after paragraph 4(b) of the 1999 Regulations. The new paragraph (ba) includes the Federal Magistrates Court amongst the courts prescribed for the purposes of Part IIA of the Act.
Item 2 of Schedule 1
Item 2 inserts a new subsection (3A) into regulation 8 of the 1999 Regulations. Regulation 8 provides that, where information is obtained under section 13C of the Act, it may be disclosed to the Australian Protective Service, the Australian Federal Police or the police force of a State or Territory. An authorised officer may also disclose the information to specified officers of the court of which he or she is an authorised officer. An authorised officer is only able to disclose the information if the officer believes on reasonable grounds that it is necessary in the interests of security to do so. The new subsection (3A) specifies the officers of the Federal Magistrates Court to whom an authorised officer of that Court may disclose this information are the Chief Executive, Marshal and Deputy Marshal of that Court.
Item 3 of Schedule 1
Item 3 inserts a reference to the Federal Magistrates Court after 'Family Court of Australia' in note 1 after regulation 8 of the 1999 Regulations. Note 1 advises that for the application of the Privacy Act 1988 to an act or practice of the courts listed the reader should see paragraphs 7(1)(a) and (b) of that Act.