EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act 1979

Telecommunications (Interception and Access) (Emergency Service Facility – Victoria) Amendment Instrument 2006 (No.1)

The Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act 1979 (the Act) establishes a general prohibition against the interception of communications passing over a telecommunications system.

Subsection 6(2F) of the Act provides that a person who is lawfully engaged in duties relating to the receiving and handling of communications to or from an ‘emergency service facility’ may listen to or record a communication to or from the emergency service facility without contravening the general prohibition against interception.

The exception provided by subsection 6(2F) of the Act only applies to emergency services facilities that are declared by the Minister pursuant to subsection 6(2B) of the Act.  To protect against the publication of the location of the facilities, which are critical infrastructure, a declaration under subsection 6(2B) of the Act is not a legislative instrument.

To maintain Parliamentary scrutiny of the declarations subsection 6(2D) of the Act provides that the Minister must, by legislative instrument, specify the name of the force or service operating the premises to which the declaration relates, and the geographical region in which those premises are located.

This instrument is made under subsection 6(2D) of the Act and amends the Telecommunications (Interception) (Emergency Service Facility – Victoria) Instrument 2005 (the Original Instrument).  The related declaration under subsection (2B) is the Telecommunications (Interception) (Emergency Service Facility) Declaration 2005.

This instrument amends the Original Instrument to refer to premises operated by the Emergency Services Telecommunications Authority, which operates the premises for and on behalf of the Country Fire Authority, Metropolitan Ambulance Service, Metropolitan Fire and Emergency Services Board and the Police Force of Victoria.

This instrument also replaces the reference to ‘Tally Ho’ with the more appropriate suburb reference of ‘Burwood East’.  This instrument updates the name and reference to the Act in the Original Instrument, reflecting the change in name of the Act from the Telecommunications (Interception) Act 1979 since the Original Instrument was made.

These amendments were made after consultation with the Emergency Services Telecommunications Authority of Victoria.

This instrument commences on the day after it is Registered.