Dr WOODRUFF – Minister, the acting Secretary made some comments about indexation for Legal Aid previously. The base grant for Legal Aid in 2023‑24 was set at 1.63 per cent indexation, significantly lower than the 3 per cent of the increase in salaries in the Tasmanian State Service and significantly lower than CPI. I think the acting Secretary has just said that they’ve been funded now with an indexation commensurate to that provided to the community sector, also insufficient to match our CPI. I want to talk about the 2024‑25 Legal Aid funding for state‑based serious cases, children and young people, legal representation and acting judges that totals $9.725 million. Legal Aid calculates that indexation for that funding will only be 1.48 per cent.
You’re looking confused at what I’m talking about, minister.
Mr BARNETT – I would appreciate a little bit of clarity around that question. You talked about acting judges.
Dr WOODRUFF – As I understand from the budget papers, there is funding for state‑based serious cases, children and young people, legal representation and acting judges, an amount totalling $9.725 million, but Legal Aid calculates that is only indexed at a 1.48 per cent. Is the government planning to fix this substantial shortfall in funding for Legal Aid, meaning the organisation is not able to fulfil the services it’s established to do? Despite all the extra money coming in, in reality they’re going backwards in many areas.
Mr BARNETT – Thank you very much. Again, I really appreciate the work of Legal Aid. I hosted the 50‑year anniversary of Legal Aid and heard a wonderful address from the director, Kristen Wiley, just a few months ago in Parliament House. I know many members around this table were there to recognise that, together with the 200‑year anniversary of the Supreme Court. I think the acting Secretary outlined the funding support we provide to Tasmanian Legal Aid and the indexation arrangements, which I thought were reasonably clear. I will ask the acting Secretary to respond in more detail and add to the answer. I would make the comment which I think it will provide some interest to the members and that is that the Solicitors Guarantee Fund will be advertised shortly for expressions of interest from a range of stakeholders, community groups, potentially Tasmanian Legal Aid. They are entitled to do that. I’m very pleased to advise those organisations and stakeholders of their opportunity to seek funding support for various initiatives. Having said that, I’ll pass to the –
Dr WOODRUFF – It is not the core funding they need.
Mr BARNETT – True, it’s not core funding, but it’s for specific projects for which they have a special interest. So, back to the acting Secretary.
Ms BOURNE – Thanks, Attorney-General, through you. So, as Ms Woodruff noted, Legal Aid is provided with additional funding to support the increased workload with the acting judges until 30 June 2025. That’s additional funding of $380,000. Traditionally, the grant funding provided to Legal Aid for duty lawyer services and mental health services, as has been noted by the committee, receives no indexation. The general allocation provided from appropriation for state funding does and that indexation will be at 3.5 per cent in this financial year with 3 per cent indexation across the forward Estimates. The indexation and the overheads provided on Legal Aid’s general state allocation –
Dr WOODRUFF – Through you, just to draw you to the specifics of this funding bucket that was allocated in the budget, not the generalities of Legal Aid, but the specific funding of $9.725 million for state-based serious cases, children and young people, legal representation and acting judges, it is indexed according to them at only 1.48 per cent. Can you explain why that is the case?
Ms BOURNE – Through you, Attorney-General. As Mr Wailes clarifies any comments I’ve previously made, I do believe that it’s higher than that.
Mr WAILES – So the short-term funding arrangements are often not indexed.
Ms BOURNE – Thank you, Attorney-General, through you. As Ms Woodruff has noted, the short-term funding including acting judges, the duty lawyer grant funding and other election commitment funding is not indexed. That is something that we have continued to talk with Legal Aid and CLCs about in terms of the impact that that lack of indexation has. The current court legal aid funding is indexed at between 1.6 and 2 per cent – levels less than CPI. On top of that, the TLA (Tasmania Legal Aid) will benefit from the commitment. The election commitment around additional community sector organisation funding, noting, however, balanced up against increased demand, particularly for criminal law services, which has seen the number of grants of aid provided to the private profession significantly exceed the budget. Very mindful and Ms van Andrichem and I continue to have discussions with the director about how they manage that budget with the demand for their services to make sure that people are represented.
Dr WOODRUFF – Okay, well, they’re very clearly saying that they’re not able to manage it. You should hear that loud and clear. My second question is about the Dangerous Criminals and High Risk Offenders Act 2021. When it was proclaimed, Legal Aid did not get any funding to handle matters under that legislation. That’s even though the office of the DPP received funding for two additional level 3 practitioners. So, what’s happened now is that there are no level 3 or 4 practitioners working for Legal Aid and funded for Legal Aid, allocated to those complex cases even though the government has recognised that there’s a need for that at the DPP.
Can you understand that what’s happening is that you’re recognising the need for that for those cases but not providing that public access to justice for them through Legal Aid?
Mr BARNETT – Thanks very much for the question and also acknowledging the recent law reform in terms of dangerous criminals and the flow-on effect into the community and specifically Legal Aid. I will ask the Acting Secretary to speak to that matter.
Ms BOURNE – Thanks, Attorney-General. Through you, this is something that we engage with Legal Aid about at the inception of the legislative change, noting the need for additional resources, that was indicative at the time based on what we thought the workload would be to defend individuals who were the subject to a high-risk offender order. The DPP did receive additional funding. In the short time that that legislation has been operating the role of the DPP in engaging in the requirements under the act around the assessment to make a decision to apply for an order has been fairly consistent.
At this stage, noting that we anticipate there will be a need for additional resources, I believe we continue to work with Legal Aid as the demand for defence of those types of orders becomes more known. The scheme is still at an early stage, but it’s not lost on the agency that there is a role for Legal Aid to defend people who are subject to those orders. That is something that we continue to talk to government about to make sure that they’re appropriately resourced.
Dr WOODRUFF – The governments deliberately made a choice here to put money into prosecuting, but no commensurate amount of money into defence. That is a pretty shameful situation for a government to do in this matter. I’m shocked. Have you got anything to say, Attorney‑General?
Mr BARNETT – It is an important reform – dangerous criminals and high-risk offenders’ reforms.
Dr WOODRUFF – We voted to support it; there is no doubt about it.
Mr BARNETT – Yes and I appreciate your reflections on that, thank you.
Dr WOODRUFF – Everyone has a right to justice – no matter what the crime.
CHAIR – Order. You have asked the question if you could let the minister answer.
Mr BARNETT – I think there’s an acknowledgement, vis‑a‑vis the support for the Director of Public Prosecutions Office and their important work and of course the DPP will be here shortly who can speak to that and answer any questions. We recognise as a government and likewise other jurisdictions around Australia in terms of the criminal justice system and defence counsel. It is very challenging. It has been for some time and there’s no surprise in that.
I’ve already indicated that we have a range of reforms in place to try to increase the number of young graduates coming through. We have a program in the Department of Justice that supports the graduates being trained and working within our Department of Justice and then building up that support into the private sector so that those young lawyers can then operate in Tasmania, including the rural and regional areas.
In terms of support for the Tasmania Legal Aid, I’ve always had a very high regard for them across my political career, federal and state, and wanted to acknowledge that again today. I’ll ask the Acting Secretary to add to that answer.
Ms BOURNE – The only thing I’d add is for the committee’s benefit to note that as at 25 July 2024, there were five offenders in the community on high risk offender orders and another prisoner in prison having breached the conditions of their HRO. That’s not in any way to diminish the need for Legal Aid to be resourced to provide defence counsel for these matters but to indicate, at this stage, the relatively low level of offenders – noting the role of the DPP across a number of related aspects of the legislation, but particularly in making applications to the Supreme Court for those orders and an active role on the Risk Management and Assessment Committee that I Chair to review eligible prisoners across the state – is fairly significant. The additional resources allocated to Mr Coates’s office reflect that additional workload.
