Strengthening protection of our children

The Rockliff Liberal Government is toughening laws to protect Tasmanian children.

Minister for Police, Fire and Emergency Management, Felix Ellis, said ensuring the safety of children from child sex offenders in Tasmania is paramount.

“We are adding additional Tasmania Police officers through this Budget with the sole purpose of monitoring convicted sex offenders across the State,” Minister Ellis said.

“This investment of $3.2 million provides an extra five dedicated investigators and the establishment a new Sex Offenders Disclosure Program.

“Convicted sex offenders who are listed on the Sex Offender Register will be strictly monitored in accordance with their court orders by these officers.

“The new investigators will be embedded in Tasmania Police’s Family and Sexual Violence Command in each district.

“We’re making these changes because we are serious about protecting our children, and we know that these sex offenders are on the register because they pose a risk.”

Minister Ellis said the Government will also introduce the Sex Offender Disclosure Scheme.

“As part of the disclosure scheme, our Government will also introduce changes to allow a parent or guardian to ask if a specific person who has regular, unsupervised access to their child is on the sex offender register," he said.

“Empowering parents will ensure they have the ability to access the information they need to protect their children.”

Minister Ellis said amending the Community Protection (Offender Reporting) Act 2005 will strengthen the collection and sharing of information about sex offenders and other reportable offenders between government agencies to ensure the safety of children and the community.

“We will progress these amendments, which will include community consultation, as a priority to further enhance Tasmania Police’s capability in responding to protecting the most vulnerable people in our community – our children,” he said.