Chapter Two - Annual reports of statutory authorities


Chapter Two - Annual reports of statutory authorities

2.1       The following annual reports of statutory authorities were referred to the Committee:

  • Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Services
  • Aboriginal Land Commissioner
  • Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement Inc
  • Administrative Appeals Tribunal
  • Administrative Review Council
  • Anindilyakwa Land Council
  • Audio Visual Copyright Society Limited (Screenrights)
  • Australian Customs Service
  • Australian Government Solicitor
  • Australian Institute of Criminology and Criminology Research Council
  • Australian Law Reform Commission
  • Australian Security Intelligence Organisation
  • Australian Transaction Reports Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC)
  • Central Queensland Land Council Aboriginal Corporation
  • Copyright Agency Limited
  • Commonwealth Ombudsman
  • CrimTrac Agency
  • Director of Public Prosecutions
  • Family Court of Australia
  • Family Law Council
  • Federal Magistrates Court
  • Federal Police Disciplinary Tribunal
  • Goldfields Land and Sea Council
  • Gurang Land Council (Aboriginal Corporation)
  • High Court of Australia
  • Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission
  • Indigenous Land Corporation
  • Industrial Relations Court of Australia
  • Insolvency and Trustee Service Australia
  • Kimberley Land Council
  • National Native Title Tribunal
  • Office of Film and Literature Classification – Classification Review Board
  • Office of Parliamentary Counsel
  • Office of the Federal Privacy Commissioner
  • South-West Aboriginal Land and Sea Council Aboriginal Corporation
  • Tiwi Land Council
  • Yamatji Marlpa Barna Baba Maja Aboriginal Corporation

2.2       The Committee has chosen to provide comments on the following agencies: the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Service; the Australian Customs Service; the Australian Law Reform Commission; the Federal Court of Australia; the Goldfields Land and Sea Council Aboriginal Corporation; and the Tiwi Land Council.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Services (ATSIS)

2.3       The CEO's Review advises of the government's intention that ATSIS be an interim agency and that, as such, it is expected that '2003-04 will be the only full year of ATSIS's operations.'[9] However, the Agency will:

...continue into 2004-05 until passage of the legislation abolishing ATSIC. At 1 July 2004 the vast majority of its programs will transfer to other departments.[10]

2.4       The Committee notes that the person holding the offices of CEO of ATSIC and ATSIS had resigned as CEO of ATSIC. This followed advice from the Australian Government Solicitor that a conflict of interest had been created by the ATSIC Board's decision to take a case to the High Court challenging the creation of ATSIS.

2.5       During the reporting period, ATSIS administered programs that had previously been the responsibility of ATSIC. The programs with the most significant expenditure included:

  • $523M on Community Development Employment Projects (CDEP). At 30 June 2004 more than 36 000 participants were employed by approximately 220 CDEP organisations.
  • $260M on the Community Housing Infrastructure Program (CHIP). CHIP was responsible for more than 500 new houses and renovations to almost 1200 more.
  • $56M on the Native Title and Land Rights Program which was principally responsible for the indigenous aspects of the Australian Government's native title system. It funded 16 organisations to provide native title services.[11]

2.6       Recent reassessments of indigenous policy have resulted in ATSIS developing 'best practice' reforms for funding methodologies and service provision. ATSIS focused on the following two initiatives, which are to be implemented in 2004-05:

  • Program Funding Agreements. These are designed to make service delivery organisations more accountable for performance and achievement of prescribed outcomes, both to the agency providing funds and to the local community receiving the services.
  • The Tendering of Legal Services. This initiative is designed to get maximum value from funds provided for indigenous legal aid, to ensure professional and culturally appropriate legal services, to target services to those most in need, and to provide some consistency in funding allowing longer term panning.[12]

2.7       The Committee considers the annual report of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Services to be "apparently satisfactory."

Australian Customs Service (ACS)

2.8       The Committee notes the ACS advice that a decision of the High Court of Australia handed down on 5 September 2003 will 'have significant implications for the way in which Customs conducts prosecutions'[13] under certain sections of the Customs Act 1901 and the Excise Act 1901. The Court 'held that to obtain a conviction for the customs and excise offences, the elements of the offence must be established beyond reasonable doubt (criminal standard of proof), even where prosecutions are framed as civil actions.'[14]

2.9       The reporting period constitutes the first full financial year of reporting under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (Cth). ACS advised that in 2003-04:

... Customs restrained just over $3 million in assets including cash, a vehicle and a private residence. No assets retrained by Customs under Proceeds of Crime legislation have progressed to forfeiture at this time.[15]

2.10   The ACS reported that, over the reporting period, it has been involved in a whole-of-government assistance package to Papua New Guinea. The ACS role has been to assist PNG Customs to develop a long term capacity building plan to develop improvements in revenue collection, border security and integrity. Assistance is expected to continue for another three to five years.

2.11   The ACS received $15 million in funding 'to deploy new travel document readers at the Primary Line in all Australian International Airports'.[16] The readers allow ACS officers to identify fraudulent or altered passports through the detection of faults that are not visible to the human eye.

The new readers were installed in all major international airports in December 2003 with full functionality implemented in February 2004. To the end of June 2004, seven fraudulent passports have been detected using the new readers.[17]

2.12   The Committee considers the annual report of the Australian Customs Service to be "apparently satisfactory."

Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC)

2.13   The ALRC completed two major inquiries during the reporting period. These were: the Inquiry into Classified and Security Sensitive Information (tabled in the Senate on 23 June 2004); and the Inquiry into Gene Patenting and Human Health (tabled 16 November 2004).

2.14   The Committee notes the continued interest generated by the ALRC's report on the protection of human genetic information.[18] The ALRC President accepted invitations to speak at a number of prestigious conferences concerning issues related to the inquiry, including:

  • the XIXth International Congress on Genetics, Melbourne;
  • the Einstein Institute for Science Health and the Courts Conference, Sydney;
  • the United States Secretary of Health's Advisory Committee on Genetics Health and Society, Washington DC; and
  • the Genomics and Public Policy Conference, Ottawa, Canada.[19]

2.15   The report advises of the recent formation of the Commonwealth Association of Law Reform Agencies (CALRA) for the purpose of 'promoting the increased exchange of ideas, information, staff and expertise among the various law reform bodies internationally.'[20]

2.16   The Committee congratulates the ALRC President (Professor David Weisbrot) on his election as the inaugural Vice-President of CALRA.

2.17   A total of eight students from four Australian universities completed internships with the ALRC during 2003-04 as part of the Commission's role in engaging the wider community in law reform activities.

Internships are conducted on a voluntary basis, providing students with the opportunity to work alongside Commissioners and legal staff and undertake research work in a professional environment.[21]

2.18   The Committee considers the annual report of the Australian Law Reform Commission to be "apparently satisfactory."

Federal Court of Australia

2.19   The Federal Court reports a number of significant issues and developments in its 2003-2004 Annual Report. One such development was the finalisation of a memorandum of understanding with the Family Court of Australia for the use of the Casetrack case management system. In addition to case management function improvements, 'Casetrack will provide essential statistical, operational and other management information through its reporting facilities.'[22]

2.20   In 2002, the Court adopted a Self Represented Litigants Management Plan in order to identify strategies to assist the needs of self represented litigants. Some 34 per cent of matters before the court in 2003-04 involved at least one party who was unrepresented at some point during proceedings.

2.21   To further assist unrepresented litigants, the Court has also 'enhanced the content and location of information on its web site to provide greater assistance to self represented litigants, including details of possible sources of legal advice and assistance.'[23]

2.22   The Court has continued to foster links with the Mahkamah Agung (Supreme Court of Indonesia) with which it has partnered the Indonesian Judicial Training Program. The partnership was recognised in a Memorandum of Understanding, which was signed by the respective Chief Justices in March 2004. The Memorandum:

... sets a foundation for ongoing judicial co-operation and assistance. It is believed that the memorandum is a 'World First' and a model for future collaboration between courts operating in different countries.[24]

2.23   The Court participated in a major review of security arrangements in conjunction with other jurisdictions and the Attorney-General's Department. The review, conducted by external consultants, advised of a number of areas in which improvements might be made. The Court advises that, while it has already undertaken to implement some of the recommendations, the provision of x-ray scanning equipment at the entry to Court buildings is beyond its current funding capacity. The Court has applied to the Government for additional funding to implement the proposed security upgrades.

2.24   The Committee considers the annual report of the Federal Court of Australia to be "apparently satisfactory."

Goldfields Land and Sea Council Aboriginal Corporation (Representative Body) (GLSC)

2.25             Mr Ian Tucker, Chairman of the GLSC stated in the Chairman's Report that the securing of the Goldfields Pastoral Access Principles agreement during 2003-04 was the most significant agreement reached during the year. The agreement was initiated by the GLSC and was negotiated with assistance from the National Native Title Tribunal. The Chairman reported that:

The principles have set guidelines for arriving at mutually agreeable local arrangements whereby Aboriginal people can access their traditional country throughout the Goldfields and protect culturally significant sites within it.[25]

2.26   The report noted the council's concern over the length of time taken to determine nave title claims in the Federal Court and the financial impact of extended litigation on Council resources. The Executive Director's Report states:

...the Wongatha claim (north-east Goldfields) was before the court for the entire year, having commenced in February 2002. The court's findings are not expected to be handed down until either late 2004 or early 2005.[26]

2.27             The Committee notes that Mr Brian Wyatt, Executive Director of the GLSC was successful in gaining a Churchill Fellowship from the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust. With the Trust's assistance, Mr Wyatt travelled to South Africa, Canada and the United States to study land distribution and management systems operating on behalf of the indigenous peoples in those countries.

2.28             Other activities undertaken by the GLSC during the reporting period included:

  • facilitating and assisting the majority of the region's native title claims, including verifying that claims reflect appropriate native title holding groups or shared interests;
  • negotiating and working with government at all levels and other stakeholders towards protection of native title rights and interests in the context of development; and
  • working with the Department of Conservation and Land Management to implement a memorandum of understanding between the State Government and GLSC that facilitates joint management arrangements for national parks in the Goldfields.

2.29             The Committee considers the annual report of the Goldfields Land and Sea Council Aboriginal Corporation (Representative Body) to be "apparently satisfactory."

Tiwi Land Council

2.30             The Chairman of the Tiwi Land Council, Mr Frederick Mungatopi, advises in the opening paragraph of his report that:

This has been a most productive year for the Tiwi people with the Land Council negotiating good outcomes in forestry and development of Port Melville to Phase 1 completion where it can accommodate timber export barges. The first export load of logs was farewelled by Minister Amanda Vanstone on 11 September 2004, and heralds a new era for our Tiwi people.[27]

2.31             The Tiwi Forestry Project continues to expand and, as mentioned above, the first timber shipment occurred on 11 September 2004, with the export of 7,000 tonnes of Tiwi timber to China.

2.32             Around 17,000 tonnes of hardwood sawlogs were harvested and transported to Port Melville during the year. There is now a 35,000 tonne stockpile at the port, ready for export to customers in China, Vietnam and Indonesia.[28]

2.33             The Committee notes that the Tiwi Land Council and Sylvatech Ltd were recipients of a Prime Minister's Award. The award was for excellence in community business partnerships. It:

... recognizes the demonstrated commitment of excellence to the Tiwi community by the Tiwi landowners in business partnership with Sylvatech Limited.[29]

2.34             Tiwi leaders have concluded that 'education is the major impediment to their [Tiwi children] fully integrated participation in modern land use and in the social and economic benefits landowners believe will follow'.[30] The Council has therefore commissioned a feasibility study into education on the Tiwi Islands which it hopes will result in the establishment of a Tiwi Landowners School. On completion of the study, it is expected that a project manager and a school principal will be engaged and the project will be overseen by a planning group comprised of Tiwi men and women.

2.35             The Committee considers the annual report of the Tiwi Land Council to be "apparently satisfactory."

Senator Marise Payne
Chair