Elise Archer,Attorney-General
Tasmanians want the certainty of mandatory jail time for serious child sex offenders.
Today, the Hodgman majority Liberal Government will table a bill which will again seek to implement our plans and help to protect our children and our frontline workers including correctional officers, ambulance officers, nurses, midwives, medical orderlies, hospital attendants and child safety officers, by delivering guaranteed jail time.
We have gone to the past two elections with a strong plan to keep the Tasmanian community safe and this plan has been endorsed by Tasmanians.
Despite this, Labor has sought at every opportunity to stymie the Government's agenda, including voting against our plans for guaranteed jail time for those who commit serious sexual offences against our children and also those who seriously assault our frontline workers.
Sentencing laws must serve to denounce violence and provide protection for frontline workers who are routinely placed in dangerous and potentially violent situations, as well as vulnerable children who are unable to protect themselves.
In May, Beyond Abuse's Steve Fisher said:
"Seventy two per cent of Tasmanians support Mandatory sentencing in Tasmania, so we are quite shocked that…Labor…would attempt to delay a bill which is so important in the protection of our children."
We have come to a time in Tasmania where politicians must start to realise that we will never let survivors lose that voice again."
Our Government has a strong record of protecting victims and especially survivors of child sexual abuse as a result of our nation leading reforms in our response to the Royal Commission into Institutional Child Sexual Abuse - with more to come.
The Tasmanian community quite rightly will be asking what will the Labor Party do on this important reform?
The Bill will provide a test for Labor's alleged shift away from the Greens.
These reforms to protect Tasmanians are entirely reasonable, and clearly in line with community expectations.
