annual report 08-09 - Public Interest Advocacy Centre

Review of alcohol-related violent offences (15 December 2008)
PIAC, in this submission, responded to the NSW Sentencing Council’s
review of the sentencing procedure for alcohol-related violent crime.
Improving clarity and enhancing protection of privacy rights:
Response to the NSW Law Reform Commission’s Consultation
Paper 3: Privacy Legislation in NSW (24 December 2008)
PIAC urged that the privacy legislation framework in NSW be
reformed to ensure clarity and enhance privacy protection and that
this be done in light of the federal reforms proposed in the Australian
Law Reform Commission’s Review of Australian Privacy Law.
Submission on the Freedom of Information (Removal of
Conclusive Certificates and Other Measures) Bill 2008
(7 January 2009)
PIAC commended the Federal Government on implementing its
commitment to remove Ministerial conclusive certificates from the
freedom of information (FOI) regime at a federal level. However,
PIAC identified serious concern with proposed subsection 7(2B) to
remove from the scope of FOI access documents in the hands of
Government Ministers where such documents originated within or
were received from certain defence or security agencies.
Cut Off II: the experiences of utility disconnections. Final
report (January 2009)
This is the final report for the project Cut Off II: The Experience of
Utility Disconnections, prepared for the Energy + Water Consumers’
Advocacy Program. This project is a repeat of an earlier project
carried out for EWCAP in 2004. The objectives of the research are to
contribute to the evidence base in relation to consumers who are
disconnected from utilities, the impact of these disconnections and
the sources of assistance most effective in supporting reconnection.
Implementing the Productivity Commission review of the
Disability Discrimination Act: submission to the Senate
Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee Inquiry into the
Disability Discrimination and Other Human Right Legislation
Amendment Bill (12 January 2009)
PIAC commended the Federal Government on implementing the
majority of recommendations from the Productivity Commission’s
2004 review of the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (Cth) (DDA). PIAC
supported all of the amendments to the DDA.
A Good FiT: Designing an effective and fair Feed-in Tariff
Scheme for NSW (13 January 2009)
PIAC in its submission raised concerns about energy affordability.
PIAC supported a socially progressive Feed-in Tariff subsidy as being
in the interests of low-income and other households.
Considering the impact of CIN more broadly: Response to
the NSW Ombudsman’s review of the impact of Criminal
Infringement Notices on Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander
Communities (30 January 2009)
PIAC in its submission considered the reforms to the fines system
generally as a result of the Fines Further Amendment Act 2008 (NSW)
and the introduction of Work and Development Orders as a nonmonetary
means of addressing outstanding fines. PIAC made the
point that being Aboriginal does not, on its own, qualify a person to
apply to participate in a Work and Development Order arrangement
so many Aboriginal people may fall outside the benefit offered by
the new reforms.
Unified Privacy Principles - the right way ahead: comments to
the Federal Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet on the
draft UPPs (2 February 2009)
PIAC’s submission to the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet
in response to its call for comments on the draft Unified Privacy
Principles (UPPs) provided a brief response on each of the draft
UPPs as well as some general comments focussing on the need to
ensure that the adoption of UPPs result in great clarity of rights and
obligations in respect of the human right to privacy.
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PUBLIC INTEREST ADVOCACY CENTRE • ANNUAL REPORT 2008-2009