Senator MOORE (Queensland) (12:45): I seek leave to make a short statement.
The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Leave is granted for one minute.
Senator MOORE: Labor have the greatest respect for the Morcombe family and in particular for the ongoing wonderful work of the Daniel Morcombe Foundation. We support measures which will keep Australian children safe from abuse. However, we are not convinced that a national sex offender registry is an appropriate path forward. This proposal was already put to COAG in 2014 and was rejected by the Commonwealth and every state and territory except the Northern Territory. There are a number of concerns about such a registry, including the fact that there is no clear evidence to indicate it would reduce offending or make children safer; concerns that publication could lead to identification and further trauma of victims; concerns that publication could discourage reporting of abuse; and ongoing concerns about encouragement of vigilante action and the disruption of rehabilitation.
Question negatived.
The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: It being past 12.45, we will now proceed to government business orders of the day.
