Hoping to restore public confidence in the justice system and protect informants when they are used, landmark reforms will strengthen Victoria Police’s management of them and establish clear independent oversight of police.
The Human Source Management Bill 2022 was introduced to Parliament on Monday 15 August will deliver on 25 of the recommendations from the Royal Commission into the Management of Police Informants to ensure the events investigated by the Commission never happen again.
”These important changes build on the extensive work Victoria Police has already undertaken towards making their human source management more robust, safe and transparent,” said Minister for Police Anthony Carbines.
The Bill is the first of its kind in Australia and sets out the process for the registration, use and management of Victoria Police’s human sources and establishes an external oversight model with the Commission emphasising that the use of human sources plays an important role in policing and community safety and should continue, but that considerable risks exist due to the covert nature of human sources.
“Human sources are extremely valuable for police but we need clear laws in place to appropriately manage the inherent risks that go with it for both the person involved and Victoria Police,” said Attorney-General Jaclyn Symes.
“These important and nation-leading reforms achieve the appropriate balance between mitigating the risks of using human sources and ensuring Victoria Police can continue to act on information to keep our community safe.”
A senior officer will have to register a person as a human source, which might involve gathering criminal intelligence or supporting a criminal investigation.
They will have a reasonable expectation of confidentiality and the senior officer will only approve the registration if it is appropriate and justified.
The Bill ensures significant protections are put in place where the risks are greatest – where a person has access to privileged information, is under the age of 18 or has a serious physical or mental health condition. and make it an offence to disclose information that would reveal a person is or was a human source unless the disclosure is for a permitted purpose, with a maximum penalty of two years imprisonment.
It also includes an aggravated offence where a person who discloses the information does so to either endanger the health or safety of any person, or interfere with a criminal investigation or prosecution. The maximum penalty for this offence is 10 years imprisonment.
The external oversight model has tiered levels of oversight by the Public Interest Monitor (PIM) and the Independent Broad-based Anti-Corruption Commission (IBAC), in line with Victoria Police’s use of other covert powers. The PIM will oversee all registrations of high-risk human sources and can make recommendations to Victoria Police about applications for registration. IBAC will monitor Victoria Police’s compliance with the scheme.
