Attorney-General Tara Cheyne said the proposed law changes would “save lives”. Photo: ACT Government.
Convicted child sex offenders will no longer be able to rely on “good character” references to have their sentences reduced under proposed law changes.
ACT Policing officers will also be given more power to provide immediate protection for people at risk of family violence with the introduction of a new short-term notice scheme.
The Family, Personal and Sexual Violence Legislation Amendment Bill 2025 was introduced by Attorney-General Tara Cheyne at the Legislative Assembly on Wednesday (3 December) to increase protections and improve justice for victims of family, personal and sexual violence.
“[This bill] will save lives right across the system … [and] ensure that our laws can deliver both justice and protections for those affected by violence,” she said.
According to ACT Policing data, officers have responded to more than 4500 domestic and family violence incidents in 2025 – about 12 incidents per day.
The proposed law change will scrap the “under-utilised and ineffective” After House Order Scheme (which requires police to apply to a magistrate for a short-term protection order and is only available outside business hours) with a new Family Violence Safety Notice Scheme to enable an officer at sergeant level or above to issue a notice immediately, without having to apply to the courts.
The order can be enforced for up to 14 days, and brings the Territory in line with other jurisdictions when it comes to such protections.
“This is a landmark reform to equip police officers with a stronger and more responsive tool to combat family and sexual violence,” Ms Cheyne said.
The bill would also make character references in sentencing for sexual offences against children irrelevant.
Ms Cheyne said the use of a person’s “supposed good character” to get a lighter sentence for such crimes was “no longer defensible”.
“We can no longer ignore the reality that someone guilty of a child sex offence has gained access to a child or children because there is a perception that they are of ‘good character’. This perception means they have been trusted with a child or children, giving them the access that resulted in the abuse being committed,” she said.
“It is perverse that the same good character that facilitated the child sexual abuse can then be presented as a mitigating factor during the offender’s sentencing.”
The reforms have been directly informed by the Your Reference Ain’t Relevant campaign, co-founded by survivors Harrison James and Jarad Grice.
Mr Harrison said the introduction of the “long-overdue” change meant that “today is a great day”
“For too long, survivors have had to sit in courtrooms and listen to their abuser described as a ‘good person’, even when that reputation is what gave them access to the child they harmed,” he said.
“The ACT Government has shown it is prepared to lead the way in ending that injustice.”
This work began when ACT Greens leader Shane Rattenbury was Attorney-General. He expressed his relief that this change was finally on its way.
“Once this legislation passes the ACT Parliament, it will be clear you cannot be both a person of good character and a convicted paedophile. It’s a complete oxymoron, an outdated idea, and it is time it was scrapped entirely,” he said.
“The notion of ‘good character’ has often been exploited to deceive and manipulate, acting as another tool in the grooming process. When sentencing convicted paedophiles, this insidious tactic must be recognised, and survivors must be heard.”
The bill will also amend the definition of what constitutes a sexual offence so that it can apply to intimate image abuse, giving complainants the same access to rights as other victims of sexual violence.
This includes that they can give evidence in a closed court, and details of their sexual reputation or activities cannot be used as evidence.
Amendments will also clarify that a complainant, if granted leave by the court, can appear via audio-visual link or by phone, rather than in person.
