OFF THE WIRE
LEGISLATION cracking down on bikie gxxgs will be the top priority for the State Government this year, according to Attorney-General Christian Porter.Mr Porter announced today the Criminal Organisation Control Bill, which was tabled in November last year, would be the first piece of legislation debated in Parliament next month.
Seemingly spurred on by the arrest of notorious Finks bikie Troy Mercanti at the weekend, Mr Porter told reporters the "evidence keeps mounting" that bikies are a menace to the community and harsher penalties needed to be put in place. It is absolutely critical to the law and order agenda of this state," he said.
"It has always been the view of the Government that bikies are a menace to all of the citizens of Western Australia. "My view has been that there's no more important piece of legislation presently before Parliament. What happened on the weekend just convinces me on that fact."
Mr Porter said the proposed legislation included more severe penalties for members of organisations that become declared criminal organisations who break the law.He said the Government had to take "an absolute razor" to the bikie gxxgs.
"So if you persist in your membership of an organisation and go out and break the law, you're going to look at some very stiff penalties indeed," he said.
"You face higher penalties in terms of sentence of imprisonment, you face more likely confiscation of your assets, and one of the ways in which the legislation seeks to deal with the bikie gxxgs is by taking members who persist in being members of an organisation and elevating the penalties they will get for a whole range of offences."Mr Porter called on new Labor leader Mark McGowan to indicate whether he would support the Bill."One of the reasons why this State Government drafted that Bill is because we were requested to do so by the Federal Labor Attorney General after the Sydney airport murder in 2009," he said.
"Mr Ripper had policy paralysis on it and we want to know what the new leader of the Labor party is going to do."
When the Criminal Organisations Control Bill was tabled last year, bikie gxxgs indicated they would fight the "anti-association" laws all the way to the High Court.
Lawyer Michael Tudori, on behalf of the Rebels Motorcycle Club, told The Sunday Times the proposed legislation would drive clubs underground and would be challenged.
Shadow Attorney General John Quigley refuted claims by Mr Porter that Labor had dragged its heels in announcing support of the Bill.
"Mr Porter's priorities just jump around according to where the headline might be," Mr Quigley said.
"He's taken over three years to get this legislation drawn up, and he brought it in in November and then immediately adjourned the debate."Mr Quigley said Labor supported most aspects of the Bill.
"We support the basic intention of it," he said. "Some of the provisions of the bill we think could be improved. "If the Opposition fails to do its job and carefully test this legislation it might fail before the High Court just as the South Australian and New South Wales legislation failed." http://www.perthnow.com.au/news/western-australia/government-vows-to-take-a-razor-to-bikies/story-e6frg14c-1226251651553