Norway Benefits from Rehabilitation, While Australia Lags Behind
Studies have consistently found that sending people to prison significantly increases their chances of offending, rather than reduces it, and that alternatives to imprisonment are more likely to put offenders on the straight and narrow than full time prison custody....
Turnbull Attempts to Silence Activist Groups
Last month, the federal government introduced bills to ban foreign donations and require the registration of lobbyists working for foreign interests if they are seeking to influence the Australian political climate. While the Labor party has indicated support for most...
Vigilante ‘Paedophile Hunter’ Faces Court
A self-proclaimed ‘paedophile hunter’ is facing criminal charges after performing citizens’ arrests on two men he claims responded to sting operations where he pretended to be a child online. The operations were reminiscent to those performed on the US television...
The Federal Government’s Continuing Attack on Civil Liberties
The Institute of Public Affairs (IPA) released its 2017 Legal Rights Audit report on December 27. The report, which is the conservative think tank’s fourth annual audit of Commonwealth laws, found that over the last year the Turnbull government continued to...
Turnbull’s New Laws in 2018
A host of new laws passed by the federal government will come into effect this month. There are changes to social security entitlements, privacy laws, immigration, MP expenses and of course same-sex marriage will become a reality. Here are just...
Holiday Road Toll Climbs Despite Millions Spent on Road Safety
The NSW road toll continues to climb, despite extra spending by the NSW government on programs marketed as road safety initiatives and more police officers on highway patrol. Last financial year, the state government set aside $300 million for roads...
The Duties of Lawyers in NSW
The Legal Profession Uniform Law (Uniform Law) came into effect in both NSW and Victoria on 1 July 2015. It provides the legal framework for the administration of the merged legal systems across the neighbouring states. The market for legal services across...
Federal MP Must Surrender Documents About Police Raid on Union
Turnbull Government minister Michaelia Cash has lost her Federal Court bid to block access to “key documents” relating to raids by the Australian Federal Police (AFP) on offices of the Australian Workers’ Union (AWU). The Western Australian senator’s fight to...
Religious Freedom vs Equal Treatment: A Narrow and Divisive Debate
Just as the Christmas break was about to kick in, Australian treasurer Scott Morrison told Fairfax Media that he’ll been fighting back against discrimination against Christians – as well as other religions – next year. As an example of the...
Police Beef-up Firepower in Time for New Year’s Eve
Military-style M4 semi-automatic rifles have been issued to police officers in time for New Year’s Eve celebrations, and police commissioner Mick Fuller says “we just have to get used to it.” “I don’t want the public to feel confronted, but...
