A crime summit to discuss the bikie issue and the new laws rushed into parliament will be held on the Gold Coast tomorrow (October 25).
The summit has been organised by the State Opposition, but they claim it is “bipartisan” and have issued the open invitation to anyone who wants to discuss the issue.
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It will be held at the Southport community Centre, 6 Lawson St, from 10am to noon.
If you would like to attend, RSVP to reception@opposition.qld.gov.au.
Opposition policy advisor Jimmy Allen says he hopes MPs and “everyone in the community can meet in a bipartisan way to discuss these new laws and crime on the Gold Coast more generally”.
“Please feel free to let concerned motorcyclists aware of this event,” he says … and I have!
He also released a statement from Shadow Police Minister Bill Byrne stating that law-abiding members of legitimate groups of motorcycle enthusiasts are victims of the government’s “failure to consult on its anti-crime gang laws and have them fully scrutinised”.
Mr Byrne says the Opposition is not opposed to tougher measures against outlaw gangs and their criminal activities but had cautioned against knee-jerk posturing.
“We have led the calls for a measured and proportionate reaction to the threat posed by gangs. Legislation should be based on expert legal advice to avoid unintended consequences,” he says.
“The Opposition collaborated with the crossbenchers to move amendments designed to protect innocent motorcyclists being caught by the new laws rushed through Parliament by the Attorney-General.
“There are real concerns that the catch-all nature of the legislation will see innocent groups and innocent riders caught up in the new laws because the LNP refused to listen to reasonable, intelligent and sensible contributions in this debate.
“If law-abiding motorcyclists are caught up as collateral damage in Mr Bleijie’s laws that would be entirely counter-productive for everyone involved, including the government.
“This suite of Bills have been largely generated in isolation, have an extremely hard edge and have not been tested in any forum except in a rushed Parliamentary debate where there was no time to give them proper scrutiny.
“I believe they are an embarrassment waiting to happen. There will be problems with implementation regardless of any legal challenges to come because the laws have not been thoroughly scrutinised by experts and stakeholders such as legitimate motorcycle enthusiasts.
“Although non-government MPs were given scant information beforehand, the Attorney-General was forced to amend one of the laws on the hoof when we pointed out that it had been poorly drafted.
“Some of the penalties that Mr Bleijie is introducing are way beyond comprehension and I think it is inevitable that there will be High Court challenges.”
