Premier Daniel Andrews says he won’t be rushed by the Greens on bail law changes

The partner of an Indigenous woman who died in custody has welcomed bail reform in her honour. It comes as the Greens give Dan an ultimatum.

Premier Daniel Andrews says he won’t bow to pressure to rush bail legislation through parliament. Picture: Nicki Connolly

The partner of an indigenous woman who died in custody has welcomed a push for urgent bail reform.

Veronica Nelson’s partner Uncle Percy Lovett on Tuesday said he supported move in her honour.

“Things are getting done,” he said.

“The bail law might be changed for Veronica.

“She shouldn’t have been in jail in the first place. I was in court that morning. No one cared. No one at all.”

It comes as Daniel Andrews resisted an ultimatum by the Victorian Greens to reform the justice system in three months, insisting that bail laws must take time.

The Victorian Greens will on Tuesday reintroduce their bail bill to parliament, but warned they will put this proposed legislation to a vote if the Andrews government fails to introduce “meaningful” bail reform in the short term.

Greens MP Tim Read said the Coroner’s findings into the custodial death of Veronica Nelson highlighted the urgent need for reform.

The Greens proposed bail bill will remove the presumption against bail and ensure that only people who pose an “unacceptable risk of community safety” will be jailed.

“The death of Veronica Nelson should be seen as a turning point for this government,” Dr Read said.

“That’s why we are issuing a challenge to the Premier to bring about meaningful bail reform in the form of a bail bill within three months.

“We can’t accept the pattern of delayed progressive reforms that we’ve seen from this government.

“We won’t accept tinkering around the edges of bail law. We need to ensure that the number of unsentenced people in our prisons – currently over 40 per cent – is brought down.

“It’s time to get on with it. The government has had five years of knowing this. It’s time for action.”

But the Premier said he wouldn’t bow to pressure from any political party to rush legislation through parliament.

“We need to get this right,” he said.

“Sometimes drafting laws on the floor of the parliament is not necessarily the best way to get the best outcome.

“Doing this in a hasty way is not the right idea.

“We’ll do this in good time. We’ll have more to say on this soon, but it must be done properly.

“Trying to do it on some unrealistic time frame doesn’t really benefit anybody.”