Bouquets for the Bar Association in the 42nd Australian Parliament

14/02/2008

Bob Debus MP, former attorney general of New South Wales, now minister for home affairs, has delivered his maiden speech in the Australian Parliament. Mr Debus listed the priorities for his new portfolio, including rights for the victims of crime, sentencing and offender management. He singled out for particular mention implementation of the Model Criminal Code.

Mr Debus paid tribute to the�Bar Association's "invaluable" consultation during his time as attorney general of New South Wales and signalled a less adversarial relationship between the government and the legal profession.

To this end, he proposed the holding of a major forum later in 2008 at which "academics, the profession, the Australian Institute of Criminology, the Law Reform Commission and police unions will all be invited to participate and discuss proposals for reforms to federal criminal justice legislation".

Read Mr Debus's speech>

14 February 2008