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The cases of bus and
taxi drivers losing their licenses for long-past minor sexual offences is
exactly what the Green Party warned would happen when the new land transport
law was being debated last year, Associate Transport Spokesperson Keith Locke
says. The Greens supported
the Land Transport Amendment Bill last year because of the wide range of
needed administrative measures it contained. However Mike Ward put forward a
minority report at the Select Committee warning of the potential injustice
that has now come to pass. At the time, the Greens were criticised for being
‘soft on crime’ for their stand. Mr Locke has today sent Transport Safety
Minister Harry Dunyhoven a copy of Mr Ward’s proposed solution. “Labour MP Mark Gosche was wrong when he
said this morning that support for this provision was unanimous in Parliament
last year; we opposed it, but on balance had to support the Bill as a whole,”
Mr Locke says. “The Greens have consistently agreed there
are valid concerns about former sex offenders driving buses and taxis. But
these cases now being reported, such as the bus driver who will lose the
license he has held for 20 years because he was convicted 34 years ago of sex
with his girlfriend two days before her 16th birthday, demonstrate the very
concerns we highlighted at the time. “We argued some sort of high-threshold
discretion should be built into the system. Such discretion is vital if we
are to respond to real human cases in a common sense and compassionate
manner. It is not without precedent, being available in matters such as
immigration. “Harry Duynhoven’s move to amend this law is
sensible. I have sent him a copy of Mike Ward’s minority report that proposes
that the Director of Land Transport be the person who operates a high-hurdle
discretionary test. The Greens drafted a detailed amendment to this effect,
which was rejected by other parties at the time. “We also applaud the Bus and Coach
Association and Taxi Federation for their lobbying on the issue,” Mr Locke
says. |
