❓ Opposition questions the Premier on the status of sex offender Gary Narkle and the government's unfulfilled promise regarding the imprisonment of paedophiles. The Premier deflects, citing lack of specific notice and highlighting the government's broader law and order achievements.
AnsweredQoN 87Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
SEX OFFENDER LEGISLATION — GARY NARKLE 87. Mr T. BUSWELL to the Premier: I refer to the government’s 2005 election promise to introduce legislation as a matter of priority to ensure that paedophiles and serious sex offenders were never released from jail. (1) What is the current status of convicted sex offender Gary Narkle? (2) Would Gary Narkle be behind bars if the government had done what it promised and introduced legislation to ensure that paedophiles and serious sex offenders were never released from jail? (3) Is this not just further proof that while the Premier and the government may talk tough on crime, when it comes to taking strong action they are asleep at the wheel? Mr A.J. CARPENTER
AnswerView source ↗
(1)-(3) I am grateful for the question, but I would have appreciated a bit of notice of a matter of particular detail about Mr Gary Narkle. I am unaware, as I stand here, what his current status is. Mr T. Buswell : Where is he? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am not the minister responsible for that; I do not have a day-to-day handle on it. Can the Leader of the Opposition tell me where he is? We will have some interesting debate in Parliament later on about law and order issues, but I will find out and provide the house with information specific to Gary Narkle. In relation to law and order issues in general, the Leader of the Opposition cannot be seriously questioning the credentials of the government on law and order. Mr T. Buswell : I certainly am. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Therefore, the Leader of the Opposition will indulge me while I provide him with some background information that I am sure will be of use to him. It should not take more than 20 or 30 minutes. What has the government done on law and order? We have established the tough anti-hoon legislation, giving police and the public the chance to dob in hoons and have their cars confiscated. We have increased penalties for a range of offences under the Road Traffic Act, including speeding drivers and people not wearing seatbelts. We have enacted drug-driving legislation, covering a gamut of drugs including cannabis, speed and ecstasy. We have established a Corruption and Crime Commission, which has the ability to hold public hearings and compel witnesses to give evidence. Under new regulations passed recently, offenders guilty of violence, graffiti, vandalism or antisocial behaviour on trains and buses may be banned from train and bus stations as well as from travelling on Transperth trains, buses and ferries, and Transwa rail and road coach services. We have passed legislation targeting cyber predators who prey on our children in chat rooms on the internet. We have established Jess’s law, ensuring that drunken drivers involved in fatal or serious accidents are charged with dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm. We have passed owner-onus legislation to ensure that car owners take responsibility for identifying who is in charge of their vehicle at any given time. We have increased the penalties for reprehensible attacks on seniors and the vulnerable in society. We have enacted tough laws to target organised crime, giving police stronger powers to tackle drug traffickers and outlaw motorcycle gangs. We have passed laws making it an offence to spike another person’s drink or food with intent to harm, impair or intoxicate. We have strengthened police powers to tackle organised crime and bikie gangs, compelling witnesses to testify or face charges. We have passed anti-fortification laws to combat organised crime fortresses in our suburbs. We have developed powerful DNA identification legislation which has led to the collection of more than 95 000 DNA samples, resulting in more than 8 900 matches on the DNA database, putting more criminals in jail. We have changed the Sentencing Act, abolishing one-third remissions and establishing truth in sentencing. We have enacted legislation giving whistleblowers protection from harassment, ensuring openness and accountability. We have increased penalties for corruption offences from three to seven years, so as to prevent, expose and punish corrupt, illegal or improper conduct. We have outlawed sexual servitude prevalent in prostitution rings, in line with commonwealth legislation to prevent human trafficking. We have legislated to provide for the indefinite detention of serial sex offenders deemed a risk to the community. We have passed laws to ensure that criminals who use young children as pawns will be suitably punished. Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
SEX OFFENDER LEGISLATION — GARY NARKLE
I refer to the government’s 2005 election promise to introduce legislation as a matter of priority to ensure that paedophiles and serious sex offenders were never released from jail. (1) What is the current status of convicted sex offender Gary Narkle? (2) Would Gary Narkle be behind bars if the government had done what it promised and introduced legislation to ensure that paedophiles and serious sex offenders were never released from jail? (3) Is this not just further proof that while the Premier and the government may talk tough on crime, when it comes to taking strong action they are asleep at the wheel? Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am grateful for the question, but I would have appreciated a bit of notice of a matter of particular detail about Mr Gary Narkle. I am unaware, as I stand here, what his current status is. Mr T. Buswell : Where is he? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am not the minister responsible for that; I do not have a day-to-day handle on it. Can the Leader of the Opposition tell me where he is? We will have some interesting debate in Parliament later on about law and order issues, but I will find out and provide the house with information specific to Gary Narkle. In relation to law and order issues in general, the Leader of the Opposition cannot be seriously questioning the credentials of the government on law and order. Mr T. Buswell : I certainly am. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Therefore, the Leader of the Opposition will indulge me while I provide him with some background information that I am sure will be of use to him. It should not take more than 20 or 30 minutes. What has the government done on law and order? We have established the tough anti-hoon legislation, giving police and the public the chance to dob in hoons and have their cars confiscated. We have increased penalties for a range of offences under the Road Traffic Act, including speeding drivers and people not wearing seatbelts. We have enacted drug-driving legislation, covering a gamut of drugs including cannabis, speed and ecstasy. We have established a Corruption and Crime Commission, which has the ability to hold public hearings and compel witnesses to give evidence. Under new regulations passed recently, offenders guilty of violence, graffiti, vandalism or antisocial behaviour on trains and buses may be banned from train and bus stations as well as from travelling on Transperth trains, buses and ferries, and Transwa rail and road coach services. We have passed legislation targeting cyber predators who prey on our children in chat rooms on the internet. We have established Jess’s law, ensuring that drunken drivers involved in fatal or serious accidents are charged with dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm. We have passed owner-onus legislation to ensure that car owners take responsibility for identifying who is in charge of their vehicle at any given time. We have increased the penalties for reprehensible attacks on seniors and the vulnerable in society. We have enacted tough laws to target organised crime, giving police stronger powers to tackle drug traffickers and outlaw motorcycle gangs. We have passed laws making it an offence to spike another person’s drink or food with intent to harm, impair or intoxicate. We have strengthened police powers to tackle organised crime and bikie gangs, compelling witnesses to testify or face charges. We have passed anti-fortification laws to combat organised crime fortresses in our suburbs. We have developed powerful DNA identification legislation which has led to the collection of more than 95 000 DNA samples, resulting in more than 8 900 matches on the DNA database, putting more criminals in jail. We have changed the Sentencing Act, abolishing one-third remissions and establishing truth in sentencing. We have enacted legislation giving whistleblowers protection from harassment, ensuring openness and accountability. We have increased penalties for corruption offences from three to seven years, so as to prevent, expose and punish corrupt, illegal or improper conduct. We have outlawed sexual servitude prevalent in prostitution rings, in line with commonwealth legislation to prevent human trafficking. We have legislated to provide for the indefinite detention of serial sex offenders deemed a risk to the community. We have passed laws to ensure that criminals who use young children as pawns will be suitably punished. Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
(1) What is the current status of convicted sex offender Gary Narkle? (2) Would Gary Narkle be behind bars if the government had done what it promised and introduced legislation to ensure that paedophiles and serious sex offenders were never released from jail? (3) Is this not just further proof that while the Premier and the government may talk tough on crime, when it comes to taking strong action they are asleep at the wheel? Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am grateful for the question, but I would have appreciated a bit of notice of a matter of particular detail about Mr Gary Narkle. I am unaware, as I stand here, what his current status is. Mr T. Buswell : Where is he? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am not the minister responsible for that; I do not have a day-to-day handle on it. Can the Leader of the Opposition tell me where he is? We will have some interesting debate in Parliament later on about law and order issues, but I will find out and provide the house with information specific to Gary Narkle. In relation to law and order issues in general, the Leader of the Opposition cannot be seriously questioning the credentials of the government on law and order. Mr T. Buswell : I certainly am. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Therefore, the Leader of the Opposition will indulge me while I provide him with some background information that I am sure will be of use to him. It should not take more than 20 or 30 minutes. What has the government done on law and order? We have established the tough anti-hoon legislation, giving police and the public the chance to dob in hoons and have their cars confiscated. We have increased penalties for a range of offences under the Road Traffic Act, including speeding drivers and people not wearing seatbelts. We have enacted drug-driving legislation, covering a gamut of drugs including cannabis, speed and ecstasy. We have established a Corruption and Crime Commission, which has the ability to hold public hearings and compel witnesses to give evidence. Under new regulations passed recently, offenders guilty of violence, graffiti, vandalism or antisocial behaviour on trains and buses may be banned from train and bus stations as well as from travelling on Transperth trains, buses and ferries, and Transwa rail and road coach services. We have passed legislation targeting cyber predators who prey on our children in chat rooms on the internet. We have established Jess’s law, ensuring that drunken drivers involved in fatal or serious accidents are charged with dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm. We have passed owner-onus legislation to ensure that car owners take responsibility for identifying who is in charge of their vehicle at any given time. We have increased the penalties for reprehensible attacks on seniors and the vulnerable in society. We have enacted tough laws to target organised crime, giving police stronger powers to tackle drug traffickers and outlaw motorcycle gangs. We have passed laws making it an offence to spike another person’s drink or food with intent to harm, impair or intoxicate. We have strengthened police powers to tackle organised crime and bikie gangs, compelling witnesses to testify or face charges. We have passed anti-fortification laws to combat organised crime fortresses in our suburbs. We have developed powerful DNA identification legislation which has led to the collection of more than 95 000 DNA samples, resulting in more than 8 900 matches on the DNA database, putting more criminals in jail. We have changed the Sentencing Act, abolishing one-third remissions and establishing truth in sentencing. We have enacted legislation giving whistleblowers protection from harassment, ensuring openness and accountability. We have increased penalties for corruption offences from three to seven years, so as to prevent, expose and punish corrupt, illegal or improper conduct. We have outlawed sexual servitude prevalent in prostitution rings, in line with commonwealth legislation to prevent human trafficking. We have legislated to provide for the indefinite detention of serial sex offenders deemed a risk to the community. We have passed laws to ensure that criminals who use young children as pawns will be suitably punished. Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
(2) Would Gary Narkle be behind bars if the government had done what it promised and introduced legislation to ensure that paedophiles and serious sex offenders were never released from jail? (3) Is this not just further proof that while the Premier and the government may talk tough on crime, when it comes to taking strong action they are asleep at the wheel? Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am grateful for the question, but I would have appreciated a bit of notice of a matter of particular detail about Mr Gary Narkle. I am unaware, as I stand here, what his current status is. Mr T. Buswell : Where is he? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am not the minister responsible for that; I do not have a day-to-day handle on it. Can the Leader of the Opposition tell me where he is? We will have some interesting debate in Parliament later on about law and order issues, but I will find out and provide the house with information specific to Gary Narkle. In relation to law and order issues in general, the Leader of the Opposition cannot be seriously questioning the credentials of the government on law and order. Mr T. Buswell : I certainly am. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Therefore, the Leader of the Opposition will indulge me while I provide him with some background information that I am sure will be of use to him. It should not take more than 20 or 30 minutes. What has the government done on law and order? We have established the tough anti-hoon legislation, giving police and the public the chance to dob in hoons and have their cars confiscated. We have increased penalties for a range of offences under the Road Traffic Act, including speeding drivers and people not wearing seatbelts. We have enacted drug-driving legislation, covering a gamut of drugs including cannabis, speed and ecstasy. We have established a Corruption and Crime Commission, which has the ability to hold public hearings and compel witnesses to give evidence. Under new regulations passed recently, offenders guilty of violence, graffiti, vandalism or antisocial behaviour on trains and buses may be banned from train and bus stations as well as from travelling on Transperth trains, buses and ferries, and Transwa rail and road coach services. We have passed legislation targeting cyber predators who prey on our children in chat rooms on the internet. We have established Jess’s law, ensuring that drunken drivers involved in fatal or serious accidents are charged with dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm. We have passed owner-onus legislation to ensure that car owners take responsibility for identifying who is in charge of their vehicle at any given time. We have increased the penalties for reprehensible attacks on seniors and the vulnerable in society. We have enacted tough laws to target organised crime, giving police stronger powers to tackle drug traffickers and outlaw motorcycle gangs. We have passed laws making it an offence to spike another person’s drink or food with intent to harm, impair or intoxicate. We have strengthened police powers to tackle organised crime and bikie gangs, compelling witnesses to testify or face charges. We have passed anti-fortification laws to combat organised crime fortresses in our suburbs. We have developed powerful DNA identification legislation which has led to the collection of more than 95 000 DNA samples, resulting in more than 8 900 matches on the DNA database, putting more criminals in jail. We have changed the Sentencing Act, abolishing one-third remissions and establishing truth in sentencing. We have enacted legislation giving whistleblowers protection from harassment, ensuring openness and accountability. We have increased penalties for corruption offences from three to seven years, so as to prevent, expose and punish corrupt, illegal or improper conduct. We have outlawed sexual servitude prevalent in prostitution rings, in line with commonwealth legislation to prevent human trafficking. We have legislated to provide for the indefinite detention of serial sex offenders deemed a risk to the community. We have passed laws to ensure that criminals who use young children as pawns will be suitably punished. Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
(3) Is this not just further proof that while the Premier and the government may talk tough on crime, when it comes to taking strong action they are asleep at the wheel? Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am grateful for the question, but I would have appreciated a bit of notice of a matter of particular detail about Mr Gary Narkle. I am unaware, as I stand here, what his current status is. Mr T. Buswell : Where is he? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am not the minister responsible for that; I do not have a day-to-day handle on it. Can the Leader of the Opposition tell me where he is? We will have some interesting debate in Parliament later on about law and order issues, but I will find out and provide the house with information specific to Gary Narkle. In relation to law and order issues in general, the Leader of the Opposition cannot be seriously questioning the credentials of the government on law and order. Mr T. Buswell : I certainly am. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Therefore, the Leader of the Opposition will indulge me while I provide him with some background information that I am sure will be of use to him. It should not take more than 20 or 30 minutes. What has the government done on law and order? We have established the tough anti-hoon legislation, giving police and the public the chance to dob in hoons and have their cars confiscated. We have increased penalties for a range of offences under the Road Traffic Act, including speeding drivers and people not wearing seatbelts. We have enacted drug-driving legislation, covering a gamut of drugs including cannabis, speed and ecstasy. We have established a Corruption and Crime Commission, which has the ability to hold public hearings and compel witnesses to give evidence. Under new regulations passed recently, offenders guilty of violence, graffiti, vandalism or antisocial behaviour on trains and buses may be banned from train and bus stations as well as from travelling on Transperth trains, buses and ferries, and Transwa rail and road coach services. We have passed legislation targeting cyber predators who prey on our children in chat rooms on the internet. We have established Jess’s law, ensuring that drunken drivers involved in fatal or serious accidents are charged with dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm. We have passed owner-onus legislation to ensure that car owners take responsibility for identifying who is in charge of their vehicle at any given time. We have increased the penalties for reprehensible attacks on seniors and the vulnerable in society. We have enacted tough laws to target organised crime, giving police stronger powers to tackle drug traffickers and outlaw motorcycle gangs. We have passed laws making it an offence to spike another person’s drink or food with intent to harm, impair or intoxicate. We have strengthened police powers to tackle organised crime and bikie gangs, compelling witnesses to testify or face charges. We have passed anti-fortification laws to combat organised crime fortresses in our suburbs. We have developed powerful DNA identification legislation which has led to the collection of more than 95 000 DNA samples, resulting in more than 8 900 matches on the DNA database, putting more criminals in jail. We have changed the Sentencing Act, abolishing one-third remissions and establishing truth in sentencing. We have enacted legislation giving whistleblowers protection from harassment, ensuring openness and accountability. We have increased penalties for corruption offences from three to seven years, so as to prevent, expose and punish corrupt, illegal or improper conduct. We have outlawed sexual servitude prevalent in prostitution rings, in line with commonwealth legislation to prevent human trafficking. We have legislated to provide for the indefinite detention of serial sex offenders deemed a risk to the community. We have passed laws to ensure that criminals who use young children as pawns will be suitably punished. Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am grateful for the question, but I would have appreciated a bit of notice of a matter of particular detail about Mr Gary Narkle. I am unaware, as I stand here, what his current status is. Mr T. Buswell : Where is he? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am not the minister responsible for that; I do not have a day-to-day handle on it. Can the Leader of the Opposition tell me where he is? We will have some interesting debate in Parliament later on about law and order issues, but I will find out and provide the house with information specific to Gary Narkle. In relation to law and order issues in general, the Leader of the Opposition cannot be seriously questioning the credentials of the government on law and order. Mr T. Buswell : I certainly am. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Therefore, the Leader of the Opposition will indulge me while I provide him with some background information that I am sure will be of use to him. It should not take more than 20 or 30 minutes. What has the government done on law and order? We have established the tough anti-hoon legislation, giving police and the public the chance to dob in hoons and have their cars confiscated. We have increased penalties for a range of offences under the Road Traffic Act, including speeding drivers and people not wearing seatbelts. We have enacted drug-driving legislation, covering a gamut of drugs including cannabis, speed and ecstasy. We have established a Corruption and Crime Commission, which has the ability to hold public hearings and compel witnesses to give evidence. Under new regulations passed recently, offenders guilty of violence, graffiti, vandalism or antisocial behaviour on trains and buses may be banned from train and bus stations as well as from travelling on Transperth trains, buses and ferries, and Transwa rail and road coach services. We have passed legislation targeting cyber predators who prey on our children in chat rooms on the internet. We have established Jess’s law, ensuring that drunken drivers involved in fatal or serious accidents are charged with dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm. We have passed owner-onus legislation to ensure that car owners take responsibility for identifying who is in charge of their vehicle at any given time. We have increased the penalties for reprehensible attacks on seniors and the vulnerable in society. We have enacted tough laws to target organised crime, giving police stronger powers to tackle drug traffickers and outlaw motorcycle gangs. We have passed laws making it an offence to spike another person’s drink or food with intent to harm, impair or intoxicate. We have strengthened police powers to tackle organised crime and bikie gangs, compelling witnesses to testify or face charges. We have passed anti-fortification laws to combat organised crime fortresses in our suburbs. We have developed powerful DNA identification legislation which has led to the collection of more than 95 000 DNA samples, resulting in more than 8 900 matches on the DNA database, putting more criminals in jail. We have changed the Sentencing Act, abolishing one-third remissions and establishing truth in sentencing. We have enacted legislation giving whistleblowers protection from harassment, ensuring openness and accountability. We have increased penalties for corruption offences from three to seven years, so as to prevent, expose and punish corrupt, illegal or improper conduct. We have outlawed sexual servitude prevalent in prostitution rings, in line with commonwealth legislation to prevent human trafficking. We have legislated to provide for the indefinite detention of serial sex offenders deemed a risk to the community. We have passed laws to ensure that criminals who use young children as pawns will be suitably punished. Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
(1)-(3) I am grateful for the question, but I would have appreciated a bit of notice of a matter of particular detail about Mr Gary Narkle. I am unaware, as I stand here, what his current status is. Mr T. Buswell : Where is he? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am not the minister responsible for that; I do not have a day-to-day handle on it. Can the Leader of the Opposition tell me where he is? We will have some interesting debate in Parliament later on about law and order issues, but I will find out and provide the house with information specific to Gary Narkle. In relation to law and order issues in general, the Leader of the Opposition cannot be seriously questioning the credentials of the government on law and order. Mr T. Buswell : I certainly am. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Therefore, the Leader of the Opposition will indulge me while I provide him with some background information that I am sure will be of use to him. It should not take more than 20 or 30 minutes. What has the government done on law and order? We have established the tough anti-hoon legislation, giving police and the public the chance to dob in hoons and have their cars confiscated. We have increased penalties for a range of offences under the Road Traffic Act, including speeding drivers and people not wearing seatbelts. We have enacted drug-driving legislation, covering a gamut of drugs including cannabis, speed and ecstasy. We have established a Corruption and Crime Commission, which has the ability to hold public hearings and compel witnesses to give evidence. Under new regulations passed recently, offenders guilty of violence, graffiti, vandalism or antisocial behaviour on trains and buses may be banned from train and bus stations as well as from travelling on Transperth trains, buses and ferries, and Transwa rail and road coach services. We have passed legislation targeting cyber predators who prey on our children in chat rooms on the internet. We have established Jess’s law, ensuring that drunken drivers involved in fatal or serious accidents are charged with dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm. We have passed owner-onus legislation to ensure that car owners take responsibility for identifying who is in charge of their vehicle at any given time. We have increased the penalties for reprehensible attacks on seniors and the vulnerable in society. We have enacted tough laws to target organised crime, giving police stronger powers to tackle drug traffickers and outlaw motorcycle gangs. We have passed laws making it an offence to spike another person’s drink or food with intent to harm, impair or intoxicate. We have strengthened police powers to tackle organised crime and bikie gangs, compelling witnesses to testify or face charges. We have passed anti-fortification laws to combat organised crime fortresses in our suburbs. We have developed powerful DNA identification legislation which has led to the collection of more than 95 000 DNA samples, resulting in more than 8 900 matches on the DNA database, putting more criminals in jail. We have changed the Sentencing Act, abolishing one-third remissions and establishing truth in sentencing. We have enacted legislation giving whistleblowers protection from harassment, ensuring openness and accountability. We have increased penalties for corruption offences from three to seven years, so as to prevent, expose and punish corrupt, illegal or improper conduct. We have outlawed sexual servitude prevalent in prostitution rings, in line with commonwealth legislation to prevent human trafficking. We have legislated to provide for the indefinite detention of serial sex offenders deemed a risk to the community. We have passed laws to ensure that criminals who use young children as pawns will be suitably punished. Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr T. Buswell : Where is he? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am not the minister responsible for that; I do not have a day-to-day handle on it. Can the Leader of the Opposition tell me where he is? We will have some interesting debate in Parliament later on about law and order issues, but I will find out and provide the house with information specific to Gary Narkle. In relation to law and order issues in general, the Leader of the Opposition cannot be seriously questioning the credentials of the government on law and order. Mr T. Buswell : I certainly am. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Therefore, the Leader of the Opposition will indulge me while I provide him with some background information that I am sure will be of use to him. It should not take more than 20 or 30 minutes. What has the government done on law and order? We have established the tough anti-hoon legislation, giving police and the public the chance to dob in hoons and have their cars confiscated. We have increased penalties for a range of offences under the Road Traffic Act, including speeding drivers and people not wearing seatbelts. We have enacted drug-driving legislation, covering a gamut of drugs including cannabis, speed and ecstasy. We have established a Corruption and Crime Commission, which has the ability to hold public hearings and compel witnesses to give evidence. Under new regulations passed recently, offenders guilty of violence, graffiti, vandalism or antisocial behaviour on trains and buses may be banned from train and bus stations as well as from travelling on Transperth trains, buses and ferries, and Transwa rail and road coach services. We have passed legislation targeting cyber predators who prey on our children in chat rooms on the internet. We have established Jess’s law, ensuring that drunken drivers involved in fatal or serious accidents are charged with dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm. We have passed owner-onus legislation to ensure that car owners take responsibility for identifying who is in charge of their vehicle at any given time. We have increased the penalties for reprehensible attacks on seniors and the vulnerable in society. We have enacted tough laws to target organised crime, giving police stronger powers to tackle drug traffickers and outlaw motorcycle gangs. We have passed laws making it an offence to spike another person’s drink or food with intent to harm, impair or intoxicate. We have strengthened police powers to tackle organised crime and bikie gangs, compelling witnesses to testify or face charges. We have passed anti-fortification laws to combat organised crime fortresses in our suburbs. We have developed powerful DNA identification legislation which has led to the collection of more than 95 000 DNA samples, resulting in more than 8 900 matches on the DNA database, putting more criminals in jail. We have changed the Sentencing Act, abolishing one-third remissions and establishing truth in sentencing. We have enacted legislation giving whistleblowers protection from harassment, ensuring openness and accountability. We have increased penalties for corruption offences from three to seven years, so as to prevent, expose and punish corrupt, illegal or improper conduct. We have outlawed sexual servitude prevalent in prostitution rings, in line with commonwealth legislation to prevent human trafficking. We have legislated to provide for the indefinite detention of serial sex offenders deemed a risk to the community. We have passed laws to ensure that criminals who use young children as pawns will be suitably punished. Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am not the minister responsible for that; I do not have a day-to-day handle on it. Can the Leader of the Opposition tell me where he is? We will have some interesting debate in Parliament later on about law and order issues, but I will find out and provide the house with information specific to Gary Narkle. In relation to law and order issues in general, the Leader of the Opposition cannot be seriously questioning the credentials of the government on law and order. Mr T. Buswell : I certainly am. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Therefore, the Leader of the Opposition will indulge me while I provide him with some background information that I am sure will be of use to him. It should not take more than 20 or 30 minutes. What has the government done on law and order? We have established the tough anti-hoon legislation, giving police and the public the chance to dob in hoons and have their cars confiscated. We have increased penalties for a range of offences under the Road Traffic Act, including speeding drivers and people not wearing seatbelts. We have enacted drug-driving legislation, covering a gamut of drugs including cannabis, speed and ecstasy. We have established a Corruption and Crime Commission, which has the ability to hold public hearings and compel witnesses to give evidence. Under new regulations passed recently, offenders guilty of violence, graffiti, vandalism or antisocial behaviour on trains and buses may be banned from train and bus stations as well as from travelling on Transperth trains, buses and ferries, and Transwa rail and road coach services. We have passed legislation targeting cyber predators who prey on our children in chat rooms on the internet. We have established Jess’s law, ensuring that drunken drivers involved in fatal or serious accidents are charged with dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm. We have passed owner-onus legislation to ensure that car owners take responsibility for identifying who is in charge of their vehicle at any given time. We have increased the penalties for reprehensible attacks on seniors and the vulnerable in society. We have enacted tough laws to target organised crime, giving police stronger powers to tackle drug traffickers and outlaw motorcycle gangs. We have passed laws making it an offence to spike another person’s drink or food with intent to harm, impair or intoxicate. We have strengthened police powers to tackle organised crime and bikie gangs, compelling witnesses to testify or face charges. We have passed anti-fortification laws to combat organised crime fortresses in our suburbs. We have developed powerful DNA identification legislation which has led to the collection of more than 95 000 DNA samples, resulting in more than 8 900 matches on the DNA database, putting more criminals in jail. We have changed the Sentencing Act, abolishing one-third remissions and establishing truth in sentencing. We have enacted legislation giving whistleblowers protection from harassment, ensuring openness and accountability. We have increased penalties for corruption offences from three to seven years, so as to prevent, expose and punish corrupt, illegal or improper conduct. We have outlawed sexual servitude prevalent in prostitution rings, in line with commonwealth legislation to prevent human trafficking. We have legislated to provide for the indefinite detention of serial sex offenders deemed a risk to the community. We have passed laws to ensure that criminals who use young children as pawns will be suitably punished. Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr T. Buswell : I certainly am. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Therefore, the Leader of the Opposition will indulge me while I provide him with some background information that I am sure will be of use to him. It should not take more than 20 or 30 minutes. What has the government done on law and order? We have established the tough anti-hoon legislation, giving police and the public the chance to dob in hoons and have their cars confiscated. We have increased penalties for a range of offences under the Road Traffic Act, including speeding drivers and people not wearing seatbelts. We have enacted drug-driving legislation, covering a gamut of drugs including cannabis, speed and ecstasy. We have established a Corruption and Crime Commission, which has the ability to hold public hearings and compel witnesses to give evidence. Under new regulations passed recently, offenders guilty of violence, graffiti, vandalism or antisocial behaviour on trains and buses may be banned from train and bus stations as well as from travelling on Transperth trains, buses and ferries, and Transwa rail and road coach services. We have passed legislation targeting cyber predators who prey on our children in chat rooms on the internet. We have established Jess’s law, ensuring that drunken drivers involved in fatal or serious accidents are charged with dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm. We have passed owner-onus legislation to ensure that car owners take responsibility for identifying who is in charge of their vehicle at any given time. We have increased the penalties for reprehensible attacks on seniors and the vulnerable in society. We have enacted tough laws to target organised crime, giving police stronger powers to tackle drug traffickers and outlaw motorcycle gangs. We have passed laws making it an offence to spike another person’s drink or food with intent to harm, impair or intoxicate. We have strengthened police powers to tackle organised crime and bikie gangs, compelling witnesses to testify or face charges. We have passed anti-fortification laws to combat organised crime fortresses in our suburbs. We have developed powerful DNA identification legislation which has led to the collection of more than 95 000 DNA samples, resulting in more than 8 900 matches on the DNA database, putting more criminals in jail. We have changed the Sentencing Act, abolishing one-third remissions and establishing truth in sentencing. We have enacted legislation giving whistleblowers protection from harassment, ensuring openness and accountability. We have increased penalties for corruption offences from three to seven years, so as to prevent, expose and punish corrupt, illegal or improper conduct. We have outlawed sexual servitude prevalent in prostitution rings, in line with commonwealth legislation to prevent human trafficking. We have legislated to provide for the indefinite detention of serial sex offenders deemed a risk to the community. We have passed laws to ensure that criminals who use young children as pawns will be suitably punished. Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Therefore, the Leader of the Opposition will indulge me while I provide him with some background information that I am sure will be of use to him. It should not take more than 20 or 30 minutes. What has the government done on law and order? We have established the tough anti-hoon legislation, giving police and the public the chance to dob in hoons and have their cars confiscated. We have increased penalties for a range of offences under the Road Traffic Act, including speeding drivers and people not wearing seatbelts. We have enacted drug-driving legislation, covering a gamut of drugs including cannabis, speed and ecstasy. We have established a Corruption and Crime Commission, which has the ability to hold public hearings and compel witnesses to give evidence. Under new regulations passed recently, offenders guilty of violence, graffiti, vandalism or antisocial behaviour on trains and buses may be banned from train and bus stations as well as from travelling on Transperth trains, buses and ferries, and Transwa rail and road coach services. We have passed legislation targeting cyber predators who prey on our children in chat rooms on the internet. We have established Jess’s law, ensuring that drunken drivers involved in fatal or serious accidents are charged with dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm. We have passed owner-onus legislation to ensure that car owners take responsibility for identifying who is in charge of their vehicle at any given time. We have increased the penalties for reprehensible attacks on seniors and the vulnerable in society. We have enacted tough laws to target organised crime, giving police stronger powers to tackle drug traffickers and outlaw motorcycle gangs. We have passed laws making it an offence to spike another person’s drink or food with intent to harm, impair or intoxicate. We have strengthened police powers to tackle organised crime and bikie gangs, compelling witnesses to testify or face charges. We have passed anti-fortification laws to combat organised crime fortresses in our suburbs. We have developed powerful DNA identification legislation which has led to the collection of more than 95 000 DNA samples, resulting in more than 8 900 matches on the DNA database, putting more criminals in jail. We have changed the Sentencing Act, abolishing one-third remissions and establishing truth in sentencing. We have enacted legislation giving whistleblowers protection from harassment, ensuring openness and accountability. We have increased penalties for corruption offences from three to seven years, so as to prevent, expose and punish corrupt, illegal or improper conduct. We have outlawed sexual servitude prevalent in prostitution rings, in line with commonwealth legislation to prevent human trafficking. We have legislated to provide for the indefinite detention of serial sex offenders deemed a risk to the community. We have passed laws to ensure that criminals who use young children as pawns will be suitably punished. Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
[Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
The SPEAKER : Order, members!
SEX OFFENDER LEGISLATION — GARY NARKLE
I refer to the government’s 2005 election promise to introduce legislation as a matter of priority to ensure that paedophiles and serious sex offenders were never released from jail. (1) What is the current status of convicted sex offender Gary Narkle? (2) Would Gary Narkle be behind bars if the government had done what it promised and introduced legislation to ensure that paedophiles and serious sex offenders were never released from jail? (3) Is this not just further proof that while the Premier and the government may talk tough on crime, when it comes to taking strong action they are asleep at the wheel? Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am grateful for the question, but I would have appreciated a bit of notice of a matter of particular detail about Mr Gary Narkle. I am unaware, as I stand here, what his current status is. Mr T. Buswell : Where is he? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am not the minister responsible for that; I do not have a day-to-day handle on it. Can the Leader of the Opposition tell me where he is? We will have some interesting debate in Parliament later on about law and order issues, but I will find out and provide the house with information specific to Gary Narkle. In relation to law and order issues in general, the Leader of the Opposition cannot be seriously questioning the credentials of the government on law and order. Mr T. Buswell : I certainly am. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Therefore, the Leader of the Opposition will indulge me while I provide him with some background information that I am sure will be of use to him. It should not take more than 20 or 30 minutes. What has the government done on law and order? We have established the tough anti-hoon legislation, giving police and the public the chance to dob in hoons and have their cars confiscated. We have increased penalties for a range of offences under the Road Traffic Act, including speeding drivers and people not wearing seatbelts. We have enacted drug-driving legislation, covering a gamut of drugs including cannabis, speed and ecstasy. We have established a Corruption and Crime Commission, which has the ability to hold public hearings and compel witnesses to give evidence. Under new regulations passed recently, offenders guilty of violence, graffiti, vandalism or antisocial behaviour on trains and buses may be banned from train and bus stations as well as from travelling on Transperth trains, buses and ferries, and Transwa rail and road coach services. We have passed legislation targeting cyber predators who prey on our children in chat rooms on the internet. We have established Jess’s law, ensuring that drunken drivers involved in fatal or serious accidents are charged with dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm. We have passed owner-onus legislation to ensure that car owners take responsibility for identifying who is in charge of their vehicle at any given time. We have increased the penalties for reprehensible attacks on seniors and the vulnerable in society. We have enacted tough laws to target organised crime, giving police stronger powers to tackle drug traffickers and outlaw motorcycle gangs. We have passed laws making it an offence to spike another person’s drink or food with intent to harm, impair or intoxicate. We have strengthened police powers to tackle organised crime and bikie gangs, compelling witnesses to testify or face charges. We have passed anti-fortification laws to combat organised crime fortresses in our suburbs. We have developed powerful DNA identification legislation which has led to the collection of more than 95 000 DNA samples, resulting in more than 8 900 matches on the DNA database, putting more criminals in jail. We have changed the Sentencing Act, abolishing one-third remissions and establishing truth in sentencing. We have enacted legislation giving whistleblowers protection from harassment, ensuring openness and accountability. We have increased penalties for corruption offences from three to seven years, so as to prevent, expose and punish corrupt, illegal or improper conduct. We have outlawed sexual servitude prevalent in prostitution rings, in line with commonwealth legislation to prevent human trafficking. We have legislated to provide for the indefinite detention of serial sex offenders deemed a risk to the community. We have passed laws to ensure that criminals who use young children as pawns will be suitably punished. Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
(1) What is the current status of convicted sex offender Gary Narkle? (2) Would Gary Narkle be behind bars if the government had done what it promised and introduced legislation to ensure that paedophiles and serious sex offenders were never released from jail? (3) Is this not just further proof that while the Premier and the government may talk tough on crime, when it comes to taking strong action they are asleep at the wheel? Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am grateful for the question, but I would have appreciated a bit of notice of a matter of particular detail about Mr Gary Narkle. I am unaware, as I stand here, what his current status is. Mr T. Buswell : Where is he? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am not the minister responsible for that; I do not have a day-to-day handle on it. Can the Leader of the Opposition tell me where he is? We will have some interesting debate in Parliament later on about law and order issues, but I will find out and provide the house with information specific to Gary Narkle. In relation to law and order issues in general, the Leader of the Opposition cannot be seriously questioning the credentials of the government on law and order. Mr T. Buswell : I certainly am. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Therefore, the Leader of the Opposition will indulge me while I provide him with some background information that I am sure will be of use to him. It should not take more than 20 or 30 minutes. What has the government done on law and order? We have established the tough anti-hoon legislation, giving police and the public the chance to dob in hoons and have their cars confiscated. We have increased penalties for a range of offences under the Road Traffic Act, including speeding drivers and people not wearing seatbelts. We have enacted drug-driving legislation, covering a gamut of drugs including cannabis, speed and ecstasy. We have established a Corruption and Crime Commission, which has the ability to hold public hearings and compel witnesses to give evidence. Under new regulations passed recently, offenders guilty of violence, graffiti, vandalism or antisocial behaviour on trains and buses may be banned from train and bus stations as well as from travelling on Transperth trains, buses and ferries, and Transwa rail and road coach services. We have passed legislation targeting cyber predators who prey on our children in chat rooms on the internet. We have established Jess’s law, ensuring that drunken drivers involved in fatal or serious accidents are charged with dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm. We have passed owner-onus legislation to ensure that car owners take responsibility for identifying who is in charge of their vehicle at any given time. We have increased the penalties for reprehensible attacks on seniors and the vulnerable in society. We have enacted tough laws to target organised crime, giving police stronger powers to tackle drug traffickers and outlaw motorcycle gangs. We have passed laws making it an offence to spike another person’s drink or food with intent to harm, impair or intoxicate. We have strengthened police powers to tackle organised crime and bikie gangs, compelling witnesses to testify or face charges. We have passed anti-fortification laws to combat organised crime fortresses in our suburbs. We have developed powerful DNA identification legislation which has led to the collection of more than 95 000 DNA samples, resulting in more than 8 900 matches on the DNA database, putting more criminals in jail. We have changed the Sentencing Act, abolishing one-third remissions and establishing truth in sentencing. We have enacted legislation giving whistleblowers protection from harassment, ensuring openness and accountability. We have increased penalties for corruption offences from three to seven years, so as to prevent, expose and punish corrupt, illegal or improper conduct. We have outlawed sexual servitude prevalent in prostitution rings, in line with commonwealth legislation to prevent human trafficking. We have legislated to provide for the indefinite detention of serial sex offenders deemed a risk to the community. We have passed laws to ensure that criminals who use young children as pawns will be suitably punished. Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
(2) Would Gary Narkle be behind bars if the government had done what it promised and introduced legislation to ensure that paedophiles and serious sex offenders were never released from jail? (3) Is this not just further proof that while the Premier and the government may talk tough on crime, when it comes to taking strong action they are asleep at the wheel? Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am grateful for the question, but I would have appreciated a bit of notice of a matter of particular detail about Mr Gary Narkle. I am unaware, as I stand here, what his current status is. Mr T. Buswell : Where is he? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am not the minister responsible for that; I do not have a day-to-day handle on it. Can the Leader of the Opposition tell me where he is? We will have some interesting debate in Parliament later on about law and order issues, but I will find out and provide the house with information specific to Gary Narkle. In relation to law and order issues in general, the Leader of the Opposition cannot be seriously questioning the credentials of the government on law and order. Mr T. Buswell : I certainly am. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Therefore, the Leader of the Opposition will indulge me while I provide him with some background information that I am sure will be of use to him. It should not take more than 20 or 30 minutes. What has the government done on law and order? We have established the tough anti-hoon legislation, giving police and the public the chance to dob in hoons and have their cars confiscated. We have increased penalties for a range of offences under the Road Traffic Act, including speeding drivers and people not wearing seatbelts. We have enacted drug-driving legislation, covering a gamut of drugs including cannabis, speed and ecstasy. We have established a Corruption and Crime Commission, which has the ability to hold public hearings and compel witnesses to give evidence. Under new regulations passed recently, offenders guilty of violence, graffiti, vandalism or antisocial behaviour on trains and buses may be banned from train and bus stations as well as from travelling on Transperth trains, buses and ferries, and Transwa rail and road coach services. We have passed legislation targeting cyber predators who prey on our children in chat rooms on the internet. We have established Jess’s law, ensuring that drunken drivers involved in fatal or serious accidents are charged with dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm. We have passed owner-onus legislation to ensure that car owners take responsibility for identifying who is in charge of their vehicle at any given time. We have increased the penalties for reprehensible attacks on seniors and the vulnerable in society. We have enacted tough laws to target organised crime, giving police stronger powers to tackle drug traffickers and outlaw motorcycle gangs. We have passed laws making it an offence to spike another person’s drink or food with intent to harm, impair or intoxicate. We have strengthened police powers to tackle organised crime and bikie gangs, compelling witnesses to testify or face charges. We have passed anti-fortification laws to combat organised crime fortresses in our suburbs. We have developed powerful DNA identification legislation which has led to the collection of more than 95 000 DNA samples, resulting in more than 8 900 matches on the DNA database, putting more criminals in jail. We have changed the Sentencing Act, abolishing one-third remissions and establishing truth in sentencing. We have enacted legislation giving whistleblowers protection from harassment, ensuring openness and accountability. We have increased penalties for corruption offences from three to seven years, so as to prevent, expose and punish corrupt, illegal or improper conduct. We have outlawed sexual servitude prevalent in prostitution rings, in line with commonwealth legislation to prevent human trafficking. We have legislated to provide for the indefinite detention of serial sex offenders deemed a risk to the community. We have passed laws to ensure that criminals who use young children as pawns will be suitably punished. Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
(3) Is this not just further proof that while the Premier and the government may talk tough on crime, when it comes to taking strong action they are asleep at the wheel? Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am grateful for the question, but I would have appreciated a bit of notice of a matter of particular detail about Mr Gary Narkle. I am unaware, as I stand here, what his current status is. Mr T. Buswell : Where is he? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am not the minister responsible for that; I do not have a day-to-day handle on it. Can the Leader of the Opposition tell me where he is? We will have some interesting debate in Parliament later on about law and order issues, but I will find out and provide the house with information specific to Gary Narkle. In relation to law and order issues in general, the Leader of the Opposition cannot be seriously questioning the credentials of the government on law and order. Mr T. Buswell : I certainly am. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Therefore, the Leader of the Opposition will indulge me while I provide him with some background information that I am sure will be of use to him. It should not take more than 20 or 30 minutes. What has the government done on law and order? We have established the tough anti-hoon legislation, giving police and the public the chance to dob in hoons and have their cars confiscated. We have increased penalties for a range of offences under the Road Traffic Act, including speeding drivers and people not wearing seatbelts. We have enacted drug-driving legislation, covering a gamut of drugs including cannabis, speed and ecstasy. We have established a Corruption and Crime Commission, which has the ability to hold public hearings and compel witnesses to give evidence. Under new regulations passed recently, offenders guilty of violence, graffiti, vandalism or antisocial behaviour on trains and buses may be banned from train and bus stations as well as from travelling on Transperth trains, buses and ferries, and Transwa rail and road coach services. We have passed legislation targeting cyber predators who prey on our children in chat rooms on the internet. We have established Jess’s law, ensuring that drunken drivers involved in fatal or serious accidents are charged with dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm. We have passed owner-onus legislation to ensure that car owners take responsibility for identifying who is in charge of their vehicle at any given time. We have increased the penalties for reprehensible attacks on seniors and the vulnerable in society. We have enacted tough laws to target organised crime, giving police stronger powers to tackle drug traffickers and outlaw motorcycle gangs. We have passed laws making it an offence to spike another person’s drink or food with intent to harm, impair or intoxicate. We have strengthened police powers to tackle organised crime and bikie gangs, compelling witnesses to testify or face charges. We have passed anti-fortification laws to combat organised crime fortresses in our suburbs. We have developed powerful DNA identification legislation which has led to the collection of more than 95 000 DNA samples, resulting in more than 8 900 matches on the DNA database, putting more criminals in jail. We have changed the Sentencing Act, abolishing one-third remissions and establishing truth in sentencing. We have enacted legislation giving whistleblowers protection from harassment, ensuring openness and accountability. We have increased penalties for corruption offences from three to seven years, so as to prevent, expose and punish corrupt, illegal or improper conduct. We have outlawed sexual servitude prevalent in prostitution rings, in line with commonwealth legislation to prevent human trafficking. We have legislated to provide for the indefinite detention of serial sex offenders deemed a risk to the community. We have passed laws to ensure that criminals who use young children as pawns will be suitably punished. Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am grateful for the question, but I would have appreciated a bit of notice of a matter of particular detail about Mr Gary Narkle. I am unaware, as I stand here, what his current status is. Mr T. Buswell : Where is he? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am not the minister responsible for that; I do not have a day-to-day handle on it. Can the Leader of the Opposition tell me where he is? We will have some interesting debate in Parliament later on about law and order issues, but I will find out and provide the house with information specific to Gary Narkle. In relation to law and order issues in general, the Leader of the Opposition cannot be seriously questioning the credentials of the government on law and order. Mr T. Buswell : I certainly am. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Therefore, the Leader of the Opposition will indulge me while I provide him with some background information that I am sure will be of use to him. It should not take more than 20 or 30 minutes. What has the government done on law and order? We have established the tough anti-hoon legislation, giving police and the public the chance to dob in hoons and have their cars confiscated. We have increased penalties for a range of offences under the Road Traffic Act, including speeding drivers and people not wearing seatbelts. We have enacted drug-driving legislation, covering a gamut of drugs including cannabis, speed and ecstasy. We have established a Corruption and Crime Commission, which has the ability to hold public hearings and compel witnesses to give evidence. Under new regulations passed recently, offenders guilty of violence, graffiti, vandalism or antisocial behaviour on trains and buses may be banned from train and bus stations as well as from travelling on Transperth trains, buses and ferries, and Transwa rail and road coach services. We have passed legislation targeting cyber predators who prey on our children in chat rooms on the internet. We have established Jess’s law, ensuring that drunken drivers involved in fatal or serious accidents are charged with dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm. We have passed owner-onus legislation to ensure that car owners take responsibility for identifying who is in charge of their vehicle at any given time. We have increased the penalties for reprehensible attacks on seniors and the vulnerable in society. We have enacted tough laws to target organised crime, giving police stronger powers to tackle drug traffickers and outlaw motorcycle gangs. We have passed laws making it an offence to spike another person’s drink or food with intent to harm, impair or intoxicate. We have strengthened police powers to tackle organised crime and bikie gangs, compelling witnesses to testify or face charges. We have passed anti-fortification laws to combat organised crime fortresses in our suburbs. We have developed powerful DNA identification legislation which has led to the collection of more than 95 000 DNA samples, resulting in more than 8 900 matches on the DNA database, putting more criminals in jail. We have changed the Sentencing Act, abolishing one-third remissions and establishing truth in sentencing. We have enacted legislation giving whistleblowers protection from harassment, ensuring openness and accountability. We have increased penalties for corruption offences from three to seven years, so as to prevent, expose and punish corrupt, illegal or improper conduct. We have outlawed sexual servitude prevalent in prostitution rings, in line with commonwealth legislation to prevent human trafficking. We have legislated to provide for the indefinite detention of serial sex offenders deemed a risk to the community. We have passed laws to ensure that criminals who use young children as pawns will be suitably punished. Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
(1)-(3) I am grateful for the question, but I would have appreciated a bit of notice of a matter of particular detail about Mr Gary Narkle. I am unaware, as I stand here, what his current status is. Mr T. Buswell : Where is he? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am not the minister responsible for that; I do not have a day-to-day handle on it. Can the Leader of the Opposition tell me where he is? We will have some interesting debate in Parliament later on about law and order issues, but I will find out and provide the house with information specific to Gary Narkle. In relation to law and order issues in general, the Leader of the Opposition cannot be seriously questioning the credentials of the government on law and order. Mr T. Buswell : I certainly am. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Therefore, the Leader of the Opposition will indulge me while I provide him with some background information that I am sure will be of use to him. It should not take more than 20 or 30 minutes. What has the government done on law and order? We have established the tough anti-hoon legislation, giving police and the public the chance to dob in hoons and have their cars confiscated. We have increased penalties for a range of offences under the Road Traffic Act, including speeding drivers and people not wearing seatbelts. We have enacted drug-driving legislation, covering a gamut of drugs including cannabis, speed and ecstasy. We have established a Corruption and Crime Commission, which has the ability to hold public hearings and compel witnesses to give evidence. Under new regulations passed recently, offenders guilty of violence, graffiti, vandalism or antisocial behaviour on trains and buses may be banned from train and bus stations as well as from travelling on Transperth trains, buses and ferries, and Transwa rail and road coach services. We have passed legislation targeting cyber predators who prey on our children in chat rooms on the internet. We have established Jess’s law, ensuring that drunken drivers involved in fatal or serious accidents are charged with dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm. We have passed owner-onus legislation to ensure that car owners take responsibility for identifying who is in charge of their vehicle at any given time. We have increased the penalties for reprehensible attacks on seniors and the vulnerable in society. We have enacted tough laws to target organised crime, giving police stronger powers to tackle drug traffickers and outlaw motorcycle gangs. We have passed laws making it an offence to spike another person’s drink or food with intent to harm, impair or intoxicate. We have strengthened police powers to tackle organised crime and bikie gangs, compelling witnesses to testify or face charges. We have passed anti-fortification laws to combat organised crime fortresses in our suburbs. We have developed powerful DNA identification legislation which has led to the collection of more than 95 000 DNA samples, resulting in more than 8 900 matches on the DNA database, putting more criminals in jail. We have changed the Sentencing Act, abolishing one-third remissions and establishing truth in sentencing. We have enacted legislation giving whistleblowers protection from harassment, ensuring openness and accountability. We have increased penalties for corruption offences from three to seven years, so as to prevent, expose and punish corrupt, illegal or improper conduct. We have outlawed sexual servitude prevalent in prostitution rings, in line with commonwealth legislation to prevent human trafficking. We have legislated to provide for the indefinite detention of serial sex offenders deemed a risk to the community. We have passed laws to ensure that criminals who use young children as pawns will be suitably punished. Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr T. Buswell : Where is he? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am not the minister responsible for that; I do not have a day-to-day handle on it. Can the Leader of the Opposition tell me where he is? We will have some interesting debate in Parliament later on about law and order issues, but I will find out and provide the house with information specific to Gary Narkle. In relation to law and order issues in general, the Leader of the Opposition cannot be seriously questioning the credentials of the government on law and order. Mr T. Buswell : I certainly am. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Therefore, the Leader of the Opposition will indulge me while I provide him with some background information that I am sure will be of use to him. It should not take more than 20 or 30 minutes. What has the government done on law and order? We have established the tough anti-hoon legislation, giving police and the public the chance to dob in hoons and have their cars confiscated. We have increased penalties for a range of offences under the Road Traffic Act, including speeding drivers and people not wearing seatbelts. We have enacted drug-driving legislation, covering a gamut of drugs including cannabis, speed and ecstasy. We have established a Corruption and Crime Commission, which has the ability to hold public hearings and compel witnesses to give evidence. Under new regulations passed recently, offenders guilty of violence, graffiti, vandalism or antisocial behaviour on trains and buses may be banned from train and bus stations as well as from travelling on Transperth trains, buses and ferries, and Transwa rail and road coach services. We have passed legislation targeting cyber predators who prey on our children in chat rooms on the internet. We have established Jess’s law, ensuring that drunken drivers involved in fatal or serious accidents are charged with dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm. We have passed owner-onus legislation to ensure that car owners take responsibility for identifying who is in charge of their vehicle at any given time. We have increased the penalties for reprehensible attacks on seniors and the vulnerable in society. We have enacted tough laws to target organised crime, giving police stronger powers to tackle drug traffickers and outlaw motorcycle gangs. We have passed laws making it an offence to spike another person’s drink or food with intent to harm, impair or intoxicate. We have strengthened police powers to tackle organised crime and bikie gangs, compelling witnesses to testify or face charges. We have passed anti-fortification laws to combat organised crime fortresses in our suburbs. We have developed powerful DNA identification legislation which has led to the collection of more than 95 000 DNA samples, resulting in more than 8 900 matches on the DNA database, putting more criminals in jail. We have changed the Sentencing Act, abolishing one-third remissions and establishing truth in sentencing. We have enacted legislation giving whistleblowers protection from harassment, ensuring openness and accountability. We have increased penalties for corruption offences from three to seven years, so as to prevent, expose and punish corrupt, illegal or improper conduct. We have outlawed sexual servitude prevalent in prostitution rings, in line with commonwealth legislation to prevent human trafficking. We have legislated to provide for the indefinite detention of serial sex offenders deemed a risk to the community. We have passed laws to ensure that criminals who use young children as pawns will be suitably punished. Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am not the minister responsible for that; I do not have a day-to-day handle on it. Can the Leader of the Opposition tell me where he is? We will have some interesting debate in Parliament later on about law and order issues, but I will find out and provide the house with information specific to Gary Narkle. In relation to law and order issues in general, the Leader of the Opposition cannot be seriously questioning the credentials of the government on law and order. Mr T. Buswell : I certainly am. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Therefore, the Leader of the Opposition will indulge me while I provide him with some background information that I am sure will be of use to him. It should not take more than 20 or 30 minutes. What has the government done on law and order? We have established the tough anti-hoon legislation, giving police and the public the chance to dob in hoons and have their cars confiscated. We have increased penalties for a range of offences under the Road Traffic Act, including speeding drivers and people not wearing seatbelts. We have enacted drug-driving legislation, covering a gamut of drugs including cannabis, speed and ecstasy. We have established a Corruption and Crime Commission, which has the ability to hold public hearings and compel witnesses to give evidence. Under new regulations passed recently, offenders guilty of violence, graffiti, vandalism or antisocial behaviour on trains and buses may be banned from train and bus stations as well as from travelling on Transperth trains, buses and ferries, and Transwa rail and road coach services. We have passed legislation targeting cyber predators who prey on our children in chat rooms on the internet. We have established Jess’s law, ensuring that drunken drivers involved in fatal or serious accidents are charged with dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm. We have passed owner-onus legislation to ensure that car owners take responsibility for identifying who is in charge of their vehicle at any given time. We have increased the penalties for reprehensible attacks on seniors and the vulnerable in society. We have enacted tough laws to target organised crime, giving police stronger powers to tackle drug traffickers and outlaw motorcycle gangs. We have passed laws making it an offence to spike another person’s drink or food with intent to harm, impair or intoxicate. We have strengthened police powers to tackle organised crime and bikie gangs, compelling witnesses to testify or face charges. We have passed anti-fortification laws to combat organised crime fortresses in our suburbs. We have developed powerful DNA identification legislation which has led to the collection of more than 95 000 DNA samples, resulting in more than 8 900 matches on the DNA database, putting more criminals in jail. We have changed the Sentencing Act, abolishing one-third remissions and establishing truth in sentencing. We have enacted legislation giving whistleblowers protection from harassment, ensuring openness and accountability. We have increased penalties for corruption offences from three to seven years, so as to prevent, expose and punish corrupt, illegal or improper conduct. We have outlawed sexual servitude prevalent in prostitution rings, in line with commonwealth legislation to prevent human trafficking. We have legislated to provide for the indefinite detention of serial sex offenders deemed a risk to the community. We have passed laws to ensure that criminals who use young children as pawns will be suitably punished. Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr T. Buswell : I certainly am. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Therefore, the Leader of the Opposition will indulge me while I provide him with some background information that I am sure will be of use to him. It should not take more than 20 or 30 minutes. What has the government done on law and order? We have established the tough anti-hoon legislation, giving police and the public the chance to dob in hoons and have their cars confiscated. We have increased penalties for a range of offences under the Road Traffic Act, including speeding drivers and people not wearing seatbelts. We have enacted drug-driving legislation, covering a gamut of drugs including cannabis, speed and ecstasy. We have established a Corruption and Crime Commission, which has the ability to hold public hearings and compel witnesses to give evidence. Under new regulations passed recently, offenders guilty of violence, graffiti, vandalism or antisocial behaviour on trains and buses may be banned from train and bus stations as well as from travelling on Transperth trains, buses and ferries, and Transwa rail and road coach services. We have passed legislation targeting cyber predators who prey on our children in chat rooms on the internet. We have established Jess’s law, ensuring that drunken drivers involved in fatal or serious accidents are charged with dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm. We have passed owner-onus legislation to ensure that car owners take responsibility for identifying who is in charge of their vehicle at any given time. We have increased the penalties for reprehensible attacks on seniors and the vulnerable in society. We have enacted tough laws to target organised crime, giving police stronger powers to tackle drug traffickers and outlaw motorcycle gangs. We have passed laws making it an offence to spike another person’s drink or food with intent to harm, impair or intoxicate. We have strengthened police powers to tackle organised crime and bikie gangs, compelling witnesses to testify or face charges. We have passed anti-fortification laws to combat organised crime fortresses in our suburbs. We have developed powerful DNA identification legislation which has led to the collection of more than 95 000 DNA samples, resulting in more than 8 900 matches on the DNA database, putting more criminals in jail. We have changed the Sentencing Act, abolishing one-third remissions and establishing truth in sentencing. We have enacted legislation giving whistleblowers protection from harassment, ensuring openness and accountability. We have increased penalties for corruption offences from three to seven years, so as to prevent, expose and punish corrupt, illegal or improper conduct. We have outlawed sexual servitude prevalent in prostitution rings, in line with commonwealth legislation to prevent human trafficking. We have legislated to provide for the indefinite detention of serial sex offenders deemed a risk to the community. We have passed laws to ensure that criminals who use young children as pawns will be suitably punished. Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Therefore, the Leader of the Opposition will indulge me while I provide him with some background information that I am sure will be of use to him. It should not take more than 20 or 30 minutes. What has the government done on law and order? We have established the tough anti-hoon legislation, giving police and the public the chance to dob in hoons and have their cars confiscated. We have increased penalties for a range of offences under the Road Traffic Act, including speeding drivers and people not wearing seatbelts. We have enacted drug-driving legislation, covering a gamut of drugs including cannabis, speed and ecstasy. We have established a Corruption and Crime Commission, which has the ability to hold public hearings and compel witnesses to give evidence. Under new regulations passed recently, offenders guilty of violence, graffiti, vandalism or antisocial behaviour on trains and buses may be banned from train and bus stations as well as from travelling on Transperth trains, buses and ferries, and Transwa rail and road coach services. We have passed legislation targeting cyber predators who prey on our children in chat rooms on the internet. We have established Jess’s law, ensuring that drunken drivers involved in fatal or serious accidents are charged with dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm. We have passed owner-onus legislation to ensure that car owners take responsibility for identifying who is in charge of their vehicle at any given time. We have increased the penalties for reprehensible attacks on seniors and the vulnerable in society. We have enacted tough laws to target organised crime, giving police stronger powers to tackle drug traffickers and outlaw motorcycle gangs. We have passed laws making it an offence to spike another person’s drink or food with intent to harm, impair or intoxicate. We have strengthened police powers to tackle organised crime and bikie gangs, compelling witnesses to testify or face charges. We have passed anti-fortification laws to combat organised crime fortresses in our suburbs. We have developed powerful DNA identification legislation which has led to the collection of more than 95 000 DNA samples, resulting in more than 8 900 matches on the DNA database, putting more criminals in jail. We have changed the Sentencing Act, abolishing one-third remissions and establishing truth in sentencing. We have enacted legislation giving whistleblowers protection from harassment, ensuring openness and accountability. We have increased penalties for corruption offences from three to seven years, so as to prevent, expose and punish corrupt, illegal or improper conduct. We have outlawed sexual servitude prevalent in prostitution rings, in line with commonwealth legislation to prevent human trafficking. We have legislated to provide for the indefinite detention of serial sex offenders deemed a risk to the community. We have passed laws to ensure that criminals who use young children as pawns will be suitably punished. Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr C.C. Porter interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : We do not impose the penalty, my friend. The member for Murdoch should know that. A person who has had some experience in law should know that parliamentarians do not impose the penalty. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle, Premier? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide that information when I have it to hand. The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
The government has recently passed legislation to increase penalties for assaults on public officers, including police, nurses, public transport drivers and ambulance officers. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : That is what we have done, and what we are doing. We are toughening anti-hoon legislation, with police being given the power to automatically impound vehicles involved in hoon offences for seven days at the first offence—a substantial increase from the current 48-hour period. New amendments will also increase penalties for reckless driving on our roads, which includes speeding by more than 45 kilometres an hour beyond the limit. New laws will also extend the definition of “road rage circumstances” to include incidents taking place — Point of Order Mr C.J. BARNETT : We have been listening for five minutes. The Premier is not answering the question, which was specifically in relation to Gary Narkle. Also, he is reading his response verbatim. This is question time, when we expect some knowledge and some spontaneity. I expect him to answer the question. The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
The SPEAKER : The Premier was specifically asked a question in relation to a comment about his government’s performance in relation to being hard on crime. Whether or not the Leader of the Opposition wanted to ask that, he did ask it. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I should not be more than another 10 or 15 minutes. A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
A new local government amendment bill will be introduced this year to allow councils to enter private property to remove graffiti where it can be seen from a public place. I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
I think there is a bit of a theme in here about who takes seriously the issues of law and order, and who just mimics the government’s approach when it is convenient to do so. When it is opportunistic to make a bit of a rattling noise about law and order, the opposition comes out of its little cupboard. The rest of the time, members opposite are completely and utterly useless on the issue, and that was the case when they were in government. Their response to law and order issues is to roll out someone who demands that the offenders be whipped or hanged. That is about as sophisticated as the opposition’s approach to law and order gets. If a member wants to ask the question about what the government is doing in the area of law and order, he or she should expect a fulsome reply, and now the opposition will get the rest of it. The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
The government is establishing a new offence of unlawful assault causing death, of which will ensure — Point of Order Mr M.J. BIRNEY : Mr Speaker, does it offend standing orders if the minister reads verbatim his response to a question during question time? The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
The SPEAKER : Anyone answering a question in this Parliament can utilise notes, and the extent to which members utilise those notes is their own business. I would have thought that, for the sake of accuracy, members on both sides would encourage the extensive use of notes in replying to such a serious question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : There have been numerous other initiatives. The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
The question about sentencing was very interesting. Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr T. Buswell : Where is Gary Narkle? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will provide the member with that information when I have it provided to me. Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr T. Buswell : The government told us it would introduce laws to put him in prison. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only an immature, inexperienced and foolish person would ask a question of that nature and expect the information to be provided in this forum in that time frame. However, when the information is made available to me, I will provide it to the Parliament. I do not know how many prisoners we currently have in our prisons but I will consult my notes. It is something like 3 787, one of whom is no doubt Mr Narkle. The Leader of the Opposition could equally have got to his feet and asked questions about any one of those 3 787 by name and expected me to answer the specifics of every one. The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
The government has taken a tougher approach to sentencing for serious violent offences, reflected in the statistics. The passage of the Sentence Administration Act in 2003 saw a rise in average minimum time ordered by the courts to be served from 17.8 months in 2003 to 21.7 months in 2006. Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Overall, time actually served—the member for Hillarys will find this interesting—by offenders released from prison increased from 13 months in 1996 to an average of 20 months in 2006, a 53.8 per cent increase. The average minimum time to be served for wilful murder increased from 15.8 years to 21 years between 1996 and 2006. The average minimum time served for murder rose from 10.5 years in 1996—I do not know who was in government then but, gee, it was taking it easy on criminals—to 12.6 years in 2006. The average minimum sentence served by offenders has increased from 36.5 per cent of the total sentence imposed by the higher courts in 1996 to 52.9 per cent of the sentence imposed in 2006. Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr C.J. Barnett : You still haven’t got to Gary Narkle. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I have answered that part of the question. In 2001, when we came to government, there were 3 170 prisoners in the Western Australian prison system. The number as at 17 March 2008 is 3 787. If we ruled a line back through the history of state governments in Western Australia, we probably would not find a state government that has been tougher on the issues of law and order. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : To round off what I hope has been a brief enough reply to the question, I will find the information sought on a particular individual and provide it as soon as possible. I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
I congratulate the Deputy Premier, the member for Belmont. Today marks the twentieth year of his election to the Parliament of Western Australia. [Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
[Applause.] Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members!
The SPEAKER : Order, members!
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