How new Bill could hand lawmaking power to the people
Victorians would have more input in changing the law under a proposal to be floated in parliament on Wednesday.
Geelong
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Victorians would have more input in changing the law under a proposal to be floated in parliament on Wednesday.
Eight of 240 community-initiated law reform proposals have been acted upon in the past two decades by the state’s law reform agency, Torquay MP Stuart Grimley said.
Under a Bill proposed by Mr Grimley, the Victorian Law Reform Commission (VLRC) would be compelled to produce at least two reports a year on community-initiated issues.
Under current rules, the public can make submissions to the VLRC — the government agency that recommends areas of law reform to the Attorney-General — but the commission ultimately determined what would be researched.
Mr Grimley said, if passed, the proposal would “hand power back to the people” in a small way. He said laws should reflect community views and expectations, and the Bill attempted to increase community involvement in lawmaking.
“These changes seek to ensure at least two reports handed down by the VLRC in any given year have originated from the public,” Mr Grimley said.
“There are also changes to increase the types of information the VLRC reports on, to increase transparency of this agency and its research.”
A government spokeswoman said the government would not support the Bill.
“The Victorian Law Reform Commission already provides the community with the opportunity to directly participate in law reform via its website, and all of the commission’s projects are open for public consultation,” she said.
The spokeswoman said the government would continue to work with Mr Grimley “to explore options for increased community engagement” with the work of the VLRC.
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Originally published as How new Bill could hand lawmaking power to the people