The Tasmanian Government has today tabled its Bill amending the Expungement of Historical Offences Act 2017.
Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Guy Barnett, said the amendments would provide better support to affected persons and clarify the law in relation to expungement of relevant and appropriate historical convictions.
“We’ve acted on the recommendations of the Independent Review of Expungement of Historical Offences Act 2017 undertaken by Ms Melanie Bartlett and Ms Taya Ketelaar-Jones in 2020,” the Attorney-General said.
“We’re expanding the scheme to provide that related offences are also eligible for expungement, further supporting a victim-centred approach to investigations, improving measures to support effective record disposal and confidentiality of records for all parties, including specifically exempting applications, investigation material and determinations from the Right to Information Act 2009.
“The Expungement of Historical Offences Act 2017 provides a scheme to enable charges and convictions for historical offences to be expunged.
“It also allows a person charged with a historical offence to make a confidential application to the Secretary of the Department of Justice to have a relevant charge or conviction removed from their criminal record.
“I am incredibly proud of contemporary Tasmania and who we are today, and as we continue to deliver our 2030 Strong Plan for Tasmania’s Future, I want to see it continue to succeed.”
The Tasmanian Government introduced the expungement scheme as an important step forward in addressing previous laws that were unfair and unjust for many people in the community who endured disadvantage, discrimination and stigma.
The Bill tabled today contains important changes to improve the operation of the Scheme and the Government will continue to update the legislation where necessary to ensure it is consistent with our community’s expectations and contemporary legislative processes.
