Dutton spruiks public register to track child-sex offenders

Parents of Daniel Morcombe, murdered by a convicted child-sex offender, fought for national public register for years. Now it seems they’ll get one.

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton. Picture: AAP

Peter Dutton is urging all states to sign up to a national register of child-sex offenders that would allow the public to go online and check up on people in contact with their children or in their ­community.

The Home Affairs Minister has described the register as the “toughest crackdown on pedophiles in Australia’s history”.

Mr Dutton says it will deter ­offenders and help parents and families make informed decisions about who supervises their children.

The register would publish on a website information about registered child-sex offenders.

Details would include a person’s name, photograph, aliases, date of birth, nature of offending and general locality — for instance, their postcode.

It would be hosted by the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission, with information supplied by law enforcement agencies.

Under the existing Australian Child Protection Offender Reporting scheme, convicted child-sex offenders are required to keep police informed of their whereabouts and other details for a ­period of time after their release into the community. The offenders are registered under state and territory legislation for periods ranging from eight years to life, ­depending on factors such as the seriousness of their crimes and whether they are repeat offenders.

The ACIC hosts the National Child Offender System, allowing investigators to share information about offenders, but this is not made public.

Law enforcement agencies would vet information before publication on the national public register to ensure it was accurate and that it did not identify victims of abuse or breach non-publication orders.

Information about offenders would stay on the register for as long as the person remained registered through the offender reporting scheme.

Details about juvenile child-sex offenders would not be made public, at least while they were under the age of 18.

“A national public register of child-sex offenders is an important step to improve protections for Australia’s most vulnerable citizens,” Mr Dutton said.

“This will have a strong deterrent effect on offenders and ensure that parents are not in the dark about whether a registered sex ­offender has unsupervised access to their children.”

The federal government has begun national consultation on the register, notifying all states and territories that it is on the agenda.

Mr Dutton is firmly behind the register, but for it to be effective all states will need to join and provide the information.

Key issues will include who ­exactly will be named on the website and what level of detail is made public.

Reports of child abuse and ­exploitation material are rising.

The Australian Federal Police received more than double the number of reports of child exploitation material last year over 2017.

Mr Dutton says a national ­approach will ensure offenders cannot escape public scrutiny, with most parents and families currently unaware whether ­people in their communities who may have unsupervised contact with their children are convicted child-sex ­offenders.

Western Australia’s Community Protection website gives the public information about dangerous and high-risk sex ­offenders.

In South Australia, police publish details about registered sex offenders who go missing, fail to report to police or provide false or misleading information.

It is expected that the register will raise concerns about the ­potential for vigilante attacks and will spark debate over the rights of offenders to privacy.

Daniel Morcombe was killed by a convicted child sex offender.

Bruce and Denise Morcombe — whose 13-year-old son Daniel was abducted and murdered by convicted child-sex offender Brett Cowan in 2003 — have previously teamed with senator Derryn Hinch to push for a ­national public register.

“This will be the toughest crackdown on pedophiles in Australia’s history,” Mr Dutton said.

“The abuse of children is a global epidemic that is becoming more prevalent, more organised and more extreme.

“Thwarting the exploitation of children is my key priority as Minister for Home Affairs.

“I have always fought for the protection of children and this is a battle that we must win.

“A national public register will send a clear message that Australia will not tolerate individuals preying on the most vulnerable members of the community.

“I look forward to working with state and territory government and key non-government stakeholders on this important initiative to safeguard the wellbeing of our children.”