Latest news with #FelixEllis
ABC News
06-07-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
Tasmanian Liberals look at reversing legal principle in youth offender crackdown
The Tasmanian Liberals will look at reversing a long-standing legal principle that is intended to be a barrier against children unnecessarily entering the criminal justice system. Felix Ellis — who was the police minister until the election was called — has floated the potential of reversing the burden of proof in the "doli incapax" principle as part of the review of youth justice laws. Doli incapax means "incapable of crime", requiring that prosecutors prove that children aged 10 to 14 charged with a criminal offence have a full understanding of the moral wrongfulness of their actions. It is a recognition that children generally have a lesser-developed sense of moral wrongness than adults. Mr Ellis said the Liberals would look at reversing the principle, so that defence lawyers would instead need to prove that the child did not have a full understanding of the moral wrongfulness of their actions. He described the principle as a "legal loophole" and said it meant youth offenders had "escaped accountability". "One of the very key areas that we are looking at strongly, is reversing the onus and burden of proof for doli incapax," Mr Ellis said. "What we are seeking to do with this review is to ensure that we are protecting the community, and to make sure that the doli incapax principle is still fit for purpose." He said there had been a "shift" in this burden of proof in recent years — although the principle is explicitly written into Tasmania's criminal code. It was also upheld by a High Court decision in 2016. In 2022, the Tasmanian Law Reform Institute recommended that the presumption of doli incapax be retained. The child sexual abuse commission of inquiry also noted that doli incapax may not be protecting children enough against "the harmful effects of the criminal justice processes". Tasmania's Commissioner for Children and Young People made a similar observation in 2023. A Liberal party spokesperson confirmed the party was still committed to raising the age of criminal responsibility from 10 to 14 by 2029, as per a commission of inquiry recommendation. But lawyer Pip Monk — who regularly represents children charged with criminal offences — said the reversal of doli incapax was the "direct opposite" of this age of criminal responsibility policy. Ms Monk said the change would have a "significant cost" to Tasmanian Legal Aid, which would need to fund reports for each person aged 10 to 14 it represented. She said it would also add delays to the youth justice system. "Our courts are not currently clogged with young people who have committed serious offences, but are getting off because of doli incapax." The Liberals also plan to make breaching bail an offence for youths, including introducing a bail test. Mr Ellis said community safety would be made the main consideration. This charge previously existed before the government changed it. Youths currently have "relevant contraventions", which do not appear on their criminal record but allow police to bring them back to court to reconsider their bail. The new charge, and the reversal of doli incapax, would require legislation to pass parliament, which could be unlikely if it did not have the support of Labor. The Liberals also promised to make the Divert and Connect program court-mandated, establish a youth hub in Glenorchy and consider aggravating factors in sentencing for youth. Tasmanian Labor has promised to develop plans for a standalone youth court, while the Greens want to end the practice of processing children and young people through police watchhouses and other adult facilities Greens Bass candidate Cecily Rosol said "crackdowns" on youth crime did not work. "If we want to see long-term change in the behaviour of young people we need to be making sure … they have safe housing, that they have safe families to live in, that they have good education, and that they have what they need to flourish," Ms Rosol said.
ABC News
17-06-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
What is the Special Operations Group Tasmanian police unit?
What led to the fatal shooting of Tasmania Police Constable Keith Smith will be pieced together over coming days or weeks, with investigations continuing. The involvement of the Special Operations Group, which was at the property, will form part of that. Tasmania's Special Operations Group, or SOG, is similar to other highly-trained tactical police units around Australia. The Tasmanian SOG has been a full-time unit, with 20 members since 2024, stationed in the south and the north. Prior to this, the SOG consisted of three part-time units. The group performs a wide range of functions including helping breach buildings, attending sieges, drug lab searches, and other high-risk jobs. Police Minister Felix Ellis said the move to full-time has "significantly bolstered" the ability to respond to high-risk situations. Police Association of Tasmania (PAT) president Shane Tilley told the ABC SOG members were the "elite" of Tasmania Police. "They are highly trained individuals who are trained in less lethal capabilities — they are trained to use long arms, pistols." "They may not be required to go into an address, [they could] … simply just run a little bit of security around the perimeter," said Mr Tilley. Commissioner Adams said the SOG had attended over 800 jobs in 18 months as part of its "frontline response" work. "Now, that we have a permanent Special Operations Group, we can deploy our Special Operations Group in a wider, broader manner," she said. She said they assisted police officers with "routine duties", including the response to retail crime. Mr Tilley said a "good portion" of the 800 jobs the group had attended would have been searches, often involving the drug squad. "Some would be high-risk searches, others would have a lower level of risk attached to them," he said. He said it was a "blessing" to have the SOG on the ground being used more often now. He said the officers who picked up a job would normally approach the SOG "if they thought that there was potential for things to develop", and that they would attend "if they thought they could help". Thus far, Tasmania Police has not revealed much about why the specialist tactical group were at the North Motton property on Monday, as officers delivered a court-issued warrant. "There are lots of questions that we all have as a result of the incident, and that's why we need to be really methodical in our investigation," Commissioner Donna Adams told reporters in Devonport. Commissioner Adams said the SOG had been requested for the job and had waited at the bottom of the driveway, while two officers, including Constable Smith, approached the house. She said they had responded after Constable Smith was shot. "They were also threatened by the offender, and they shot the offender in the hand before making an arrest." She told ABC Hobart Mornings that "had it not been for their presence I think we would have been confronted with a number of other deaths". She did not provide any information on why they had been requested, or why there may have been a heightened level of concern about the job. A police spokesperson said they weren't able to respond to questions regarding SOG methodology for "operational reasons". Mr Tilley said it was his understanding this was not an "authorised SOG job" and that they were there as support. "Those members from the SOG were simply there to act as backup units and assistance if it was required," he said. He said the SOG crew responded "within seconds" to the situation. "There will be opportunities down the track, as part of this investigation, to see what those assessments came to but clearly the resource was in the area at the time and able to attend the address."
ABC News
09-06-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
Tasmanian premier set to call election today. What happens next?
Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff is expected to go to the state's governor on Tuesday to seek a snap election, just 15 months after the last state election. Parliament will sit today to debate and pass a budget supply bill to ensure public servants can get paid during and after an election campaign. After that, Mr Rockliff intends to ask to dissolve parliament, with July 19 the earliest date an election can be held. It comes after the lower house passed Labor's no-confidence motion in Mr Rockliff on Thursday, citing the bungled rollout of new Spirit of Tasmania vessels, the state's poor budget position and previous suggestions to privatise state-owned companies. He did not speak to the media on Monday, instead taking part in an icy water slide fundraiser for a motor neurone disease charity. An election could have been avoided if the Liberals chose a new leader who would then need to get the confidence of the lower house, but cabinet minister Felix Ellis said Mr Rockliff has the support of the Liberal partyroom. "He is a man of experience, strength and compassion who has served our community for decades. "We back him in wholeheartedly." The two major parties continue to blame each other for the political impasse. Labor leader Dean Winter says the premier was to blame for losing the confidence of the lower house, while Mr Rockliff says Mr Winter is a "wrecker" . The Tasmanian Greens have called on Labor to attempt to form minority government with their support rather than go to an election, but Mr Winter has rejected this. Mr Winter said the party will not be making big spending promises if an election is called. "This will not be a spendathon from Labor," he said. "Our state cannot afford it. Labor has confirmed it will support the supply bill through parliament. It's likely to be the only parliamentary business of the day. There could be another lengthy debate however, as members can make speeches on the bill. The Legislative Council has also been recalled for the day to pass the supply bill, and members will have briefings while they wait for the supply bill to be approved by the lower house. The Tasmanian Industrial Commission last week determined that the state's politicians will get a 22 per cent pay rise on July 1, but both the Liberals and Labor say they will block this. A disallowance motion would be required to stop the pay rise. However, the government says this can occur when parliament returns after an election, with the pay increase on hold until then. Tasmania is the only state or territory that does not have its own political donation disclosure scheme, but one is set to start on July 1, potentially halfway through the election campaign. It would require all political donations above $1,000 to be publicly disclosed. The donations must be declared to the Electoral Commission within seven days, and then published seven days later, meaning donations won't start being published until one or two weeks into July. Independent upper house MLC Meg Webb called on the government to either bring the system forward to today, or ensure it starts on July 1. Mr Rockliff confirmed on Sunday that the disclosure system will start on July 1. The new laws also include public funding for campaigns, at $6 per vote once 4 per cent of the vote is achieved. Parties can apply for half of its anticipated funding up-front, based on its result at the previous state election. It's unclear whether this aspect of the bill will be in operation if an election is called. An election would also delay several pieces of legislation and the work of multiple parliamentary committees. The government intended to have its Macquarie Point stadium enabling legislation debated and passed in the lower house this month, and then the upper house in the first week of July. This will need to wait until after the election, and is subject to the new numbers in the lower house. Currently, both the Liberals and Labor have a combined 24 seats out of 35 to pass the stadium bill, but 10 out of 11 crossbenchers are opposed. The numbers in the Legislative Council will remain the same, with three independents required for the stadium bill to pass. A bill to allow for the rezoning of University of Tasmania land above Churchill Avenue in Sandy Bay will also be delayed, having already passed the lower house. A parliamentary committee examining the implementation of recommendations from the commission of inquiry into child sexual abuse in institutional settings will be paused. So, too, will a committee that is examining how the previous election was carried out. That committee will likely need to add a second election onto its workload.
ABC News
02-06-2025
- Business
- ABC News
Tasmanian program designed to encourage sale of affordable land yet to deliver any after 10 months
A Tasmanian government rebate program designed to encourage the sale of affordable land lots is yet to deliver any result. In the 10 months after applications opened for the Residential Land Rebate Program, seven successful applicants have been allocated $682,505, according to the State Growth Department. But, as of May 20, zero land lots have been sold. Developers who apply to the program are eligible for up to $15,000 per lot of affordable land, for a maximum of 40 lots. The funds are intended to help cover development costs, including internet, water and electricity connections. The program opened in July 2024 and was backdated to July 1, 2023, with developers given 18 months to complete the sale. Round one of the program — which offered $10,000 per lot in 2023 — was a success, with more than 3,000 lots of land delivered. It prompted the liberals to pledge a $10 million extension at last year's state election. Housing Minister Felix Ellis said developers had 18 months to bring the lots to market. "The Residential Land Rebate Scheme is one of the many ways our government is boosting housing and land supply across Tasmania," Mr Ellis said. Half the funds are paid at the start to support development, with the remainder given once proof is provided that the land was brought to market, and sold below an affordable land funding cap — an amount that varies between council areas. An example on the program's web page appears to indicate that if lots of land are sold for an amount above the land cap, they do not need to return any funding. It says an applicant who applied for 40 lots would receive $300,000 in the first instalment ($7,500 per lot). If 30 were sold below the funding cap, they would receive another $225,000 ($7,500 per affordable lot), with no mention of the initial funds needing to be returned for the other 10. It also does not state whether the funds must be returned for unsold properties. The program's guidelines state that applicants may be required to return some, or all, of the funds if an applicant does not "complete the activities required under the funding agreement' and some other circumstances. Labor's finance spokesperson Luke Edmunds said the fund was "clearly not meeting its objectives", and that it was "concerning" developers appeared not to have to pay the money back. "What guarantees can the government give that this isn't a case of taxpayer money being thrown into a black hole?" Mr Edmunds said. Promoting the sale of affordable land is part of the government's strategy to tackle homelessness. Each lot of affordable land sold also contributes to the state government's pledge to deliver 10,000 social and affordable homes by 2032. It has previously received criticism for including existing rental properties and vacant land in that target, but Mr Ellis has said land "unlocks" the home. A little over three years after announcing the 10,000 homes goal, the state government has delivered 4,381 homes, including 411 plots of affordable land. In that time, the social housing wait list has grown from 4,405 to 5,094. Mr Ellis said the government was "full steam ahead" on delivering the 10,000 homes goal, and that the recent state budget allocated half a billion dollars over the next four years "to get a roof over the heads of Tasmanians". The caps for what is classed as "affordable" varies depending on the location of the land. Affordable land within Greater Hobart, including the Kingborough, Clarence and Brighton council areas is capped at $380,000. Land in "urban" areas, such as Burnie, Devonport, West Tamar and Launceston, are considered affordable up to $310,000. In "urban fringe" areas, including Latrobe, George Town, Waratah-Wynyard and the Huon Valley, the affordable land cap is $280,000. The maximum price for affordable land in rural areas — including Dorset, Circular head, Kentish and the Northern Midlands — is $250,000.
ABC News
22-05-2025
- Business
- ABC News
Hobart's urban growth boundary extended to allow fast-growing areas to continue to expand
Some of the fastest-growing areas near Hobart could double in size after the region's urban growth boundary was extended, allowing for more suburban development. Housing Minister Felix Ellis approved the extension of the boundary by 615 hectares, including areas to the outer north, south and east of the city. The largest extension was 176 hectares to the immediate north of the Glebe Hill housing estate at Rokeby, on Hobart's eastern shore, potentially allowing for more than 3,100 dwellings to be added. The changes also include 166 hectares to the south-east of Sorell, south of the Arthur Highway bypass, for close to another 3,000 dwellings. The urban growth boundary extension allows for greater residential rezoning but is subject to all planning approvals. Mr Ellis said the changes could provide 10,000 additional homes. Other main changes include 73 hectares at Richardsons Road in Sandford, 36 hectares at Brighton Road in Brighton, and 33 hectares on the Channel Highway at Margate. In its submission as part of the process, Clarence City Council was broadly supportive — including of the Rokeby extensions — but had concerns with the Sandford urban growth extension. It was one of two land parcels in the government's list that were identified "through dialogue with a developer", the other being at Mannata Road in nearby Lauderdale, which was also approved. The council's submission, signed by chief executive officer Ian Nelson, described the inclusion of the Sandford land as "opportunistic and not strategically justified". "It does not promote the consolidation of development within a contained area, rather, it encourages unrestrained urban sprawl in a southerly direction on the South Arm Peninsula," the submission reads. The land is subject to overlays for coastal inundation, potential contaminated land, flood-prone hazard, waterway protection and landslip hazard. Nik Masters and Dean Richards also provided a submission "on behalf of the project team" for the potential Sandford development. They described the site as being "thoroughly assessed, with extensive independent reports and modelling already completed" as part of a master plan. "Including 52 Richardsons Road within the [urban growth boundary] would enable short-term housing development on serviced land free from flood or inundation overlays," the submission reads. Under the urban growth boundary changes, Sorell could expect significant additional residential development proposed in the coming decades. The land south of the Arthur Highway bypass is yet to be served by TasWater. Mayor Janet Gatehouse said development in the area was "not going to happen overnight", and she would like to see it progress in a "sustainable, holistic fashion". "Council is trying to manage it in the most holistic way — considering environmental and community interests, and what's best for new residents," she said. Sorell has been promised a Medicare urban care clinic, its public school has recently expanded with room for further expansion, and it has a park-and-ride service for public transport. Cr Gatehouse said these services would assist in the area's continued growth, and she wanted to ensure that Sorell's rural areas could also receive adequate services. Most of the changes to the urban growth boundary were identified as part of a review of the Southern Tasmania Regional Land Use Strategy, which is ongoing. Clarence City Council described changing the urban growth boundary before this review is finished as "premature". The Greater Hobart Plan, released in 2022, stated that the previous boundary could provide for 34,000 dwellings through infill development to accommodate for the region's estimated population growth over the next 25 years. It did not recommend changes to the urban growth boundary. Other changes to the boundary, approved by Mr Ellis, include 13 hectares at Risdon Vale, 18 hectares at Gagebrook, 24 hectares at Old Beach and a further 31 hectares at Sorell.
