The ACT Government has passed the Road Safety Legislation Amendment Bill 2023 to stamp out high risk drink and drug driving behaviour on Canberra’s roads, transport minister Chris Steel announced.

“Drink or drug driving is not tolerated on our city’s roads,” Mr Steel said. “With these changes, we are sending a clear message to the community that if you choose to drive while under the influence of drugs or alcohol, you will face an increased penalty that reflects the severity of the risk to other people.”

ACT Police will be given the power to immediately remove people who choose to drive under the influence of drugs or alcohol by immediately suspending their licence.

For the first time, low-range drink drivers will immediately be fined $800 and lose their licence for six months. As in other states, including NSW and Victoria, ACT police will not be required to attend a court hearing for low range drink drivers who accept responsibility.

“This immediate penalty will provide a strong deterrent while at the same time giving ACT Police and the Courts more time to focus on more serious offences, and could free up time for ACT Policing to undertake traffic operations targeting dangerous driving behaviours like random breath tests,” Mr Steel said.

Court ordered penalties have also increased significantly: first-time offenders for high-range level 4 drink driving can be fined up to $12,000, and lose their licence for 18 months.

The legislation also creates a new combined drink and drug driving offence for which penalties will be significantly higher than for separate drink and drug driving offences.

“The new offence reflects the research that shows that a fatal crash is 23 times more likely when a person is under the influence of both alcohol and drugs in combination,” Mr Steel said.

“The new laws will also expand roadside testing to include the ability for police to test for cocaine, which is a big step forward in our ability to detect drivers who may be under the influence of an illicit substance when they’re behind the wheel.”

These laws join reforms over the last several years to tackle high-risk driving behaviours, and form part of the ACT Government’s review of road transport penalties to ensure they are proportionate both to the risk of harms on our roads and to other offences.

“These new laws will make our transport penalties swifter, stronger and fairer, and our roads safer,” Mr Steel said.

“The ACT Government is committed to ongoing education, behaviour change programs and safety initiatives to complement the ongoing review of the road transport penalties framework.”

The government has heard from community members and advocates, ACT Policing, and the Australian Federal Police Association (AFPA).

AFPA: Legislation will ‘keep Canberra roads safe’

The AFPA welcomes the announcement from the ACT Government, president Alex Caruana said.

“Minister Steel has undertaken a fair amount of reform in tackling anti-social, drink and drug driving behaviours in recent times, and his dedication towards reform is to be congratulated. The consultation process we’ve had from Minister Steel and his staff has been very good, and we thank him and his office for allowing us the opportunity to engage in these important community and road safety reforms.

“The new legislation will streamline processes, along with allowing ACT Policing officers to immediately prevent people who choose to drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs from continuing to operate a vehicle.

“Road safety is everyone’s responsibility, including the judicial system. The ACT Government has given the judiciary the tools and penalties it needs to help keep Canberra roads safe, and we hope they use the new penalties. The judiciary needs to be part of solution if the ACT is to fulfill its commitment towards Vision Zero.”

Vision Zero is a principle that no one should be killed or seriously injured using our road networks, according to the National Road Safety Strategy. Its adoption is a commitment to a road transport system that does not kill or seriously injure people.

As part of the ACT Government’s commitment to Vision Zero – no deaths or serious injuries on ACT roads – the ACT Government ran a community education and awareness campaign over the summer holidays focussing on drink and drug driving.

“The ‘stop it or cop it’ campaign highlighted the Government’s zero tolerance stand on drink and drug driving and remind[ed] the community they can be pulled over by ACT Policing anytime, anywhere,” Mr Steel said.

Provisions relating to drink and driving offences will start soon, once notified on the ACT Legislation Register. 

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Attorney-General: Recidivism reduces reoffending

The ACT Government’s focus on justice reinvestment has contributed to a reduction in recidivism and is helping build a safer Canberra, Attorney-General Shane Rattenbury states.

In 2018, the Government set a target to reduce recidivism by 25 per cent by 2025. Data from the Report on Government Services indicates that fewer ex-detainees are returning to prison within a two-year period. The rate of recidivism has dropped 19.6 per cent since the 2018-19 benchmark of 42.4 per cent, including 3.1 per cent from 37.2 per cent in 2021-22 to 34.1 per cent in 2022-23, Mr Rattenbury said.

“Investing in our community helps prevent the underlying causes of crime and criminal offending,” Mr Rattenbury said. “It helps us to be smarter about improving criminal justice outcomes. 

“While our goal of reducing recidivism by 25 per cent by 2025 remains ambitious, the ABS data shows  we are making good progress towards achieving our target.

“Our government remains firmly committed to crime prevention and creating a responsive justice system that enhances safety for all Canberrans.”

Over the past five years, the ACT Government has dedicated at least $115 million to justice reinvestment initiatives, supporting various programs, including:

• Intensive Correction Orders: Allowing offenders to maintain employment and community connections, both of which reduce reoffending. Participants may also contribute to the community through court-ordered service work.
• Drug and Alcohol Sentencing List: Offering an alternative approach to rehabilitating offenders with drug or alcohol-related crimes. This program aims to improve participant health, wellbeing, and community reintegration, and to reduce reoffending.

Evaluations show participants in the Drug and Alcohol Sentencing List experienced significant improvements in mental and physical health, relationships, employment and overall optimism about their future, Mr Rattenbury said. Graduates of the program ceased reoffending, while even those who did not fully complete the program substantially reduced their reoffending.

“Justice reinvestment focuses on early intervention, minimising community harm, alternative sentencing and rehabilitation to prevent further offences,” Mr Rattenbury said.

ACT Greens: New school for Belconnen

The ACT Greens have today won parliamentary support for a new primary and secondary school in Belconnen Town Centre.

Jo Clay MLA secured tri-partisan support from her Legislative Assembly colleagues for a new school in the area.

“The ACT Greens want Canberra to be a liveable city where kids can walk and ride to school,” Ms Clay said. “Currently, there is no school in the Belconnen Town Centre – one of the fastest growing areas of Canberra.”

Belconnen Town Centre will soon have more than 11,500 homes – more than Goulburn, which has nine primary schools, Ms Clay noted.

“The Belco community has been calling for a school in the town centre for years, and I was really pleased to take on this initiative on behalf of our community…

“This commitment provides more certainty for families already in Belconnen and those looking to move to the area, with Belconnen set to grow by more than 3,000 new homes over the next decade.”