| Senator the Hon John Faulkner Cabinet Secretary Special Minister of State |
Robert McClelland MP Attorney-General |
26/2008
11 August 2008
The Government has today announced its intention to bring Australia’s privacy laws into the 21st Century after a report into the effectiveness of Australian privacy laws was launched by the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC).
For Your Information: Australian Privacy Law and Practice is the culmination of a two year inquiry by the ALRC. The report contains 295 recommendations to improve Australia’s privacy framework.
The Government shares the concern of many Australians that massive advances in information technology can erode privacy, and believes that information privacy laws should operate consistently and effectively throughout Australia.
Cabinet Secretary John Faulkner and Attorney-General Robert McClelland highlighted the increasing importance Australians place in protecting their personal information.
“The broad coverage of the report shows that the concept of privacy is increasingly relevant to individuals as well as business, and privacy laws should work effectively for both”, Senator Faulkner said.
“The capacity for businesses to collect, store, use and indeed share and sell large quantities of information has caused concern.”
Given the large number of recommendations, the Government proposes to consider the report in stages.
The first stage of the response will focus on the recommendations relating to the unified privacy principles (UPPs), health and credit reporting regulations and improving education about the impact on privacy by new technologies.
The second stage of the response will consider the recommendations relating to the removal of exemptions, data breach notices and the tort of privacy.
“I will, of course, be consulting with relevant portfolio Ministers about recommendations which fall outside my portfolio, as well as the States and Territories about proposals to harmonise Commonwealth, State and Territory privacy regulation”, Senator Faulkner said.
“An effective privacy framework should provide an appropriate balance between the protection of personal information while at the same time permitting the reasonable flow of information for government and business purposes.”
The ALRC undertook extensive research and consultation with community groups and privacy professionals in considering the many complex issues canvassed by the inquiry.
“The Government congratulates the ALRC in releasing this comprehensive and significant report, and I thank them for their thorough review of this complex area,” the Attorney‑General Robert McClelland said.
A copy of the report is available at www.alrc.gov.au.
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| Senator Faulkner's Office - Colin Campbell - 0407 787 181 Attorney-General’s Office - Adam Sims - 0419 480 224 |
www.cabinetsecretary.gov.au www.smos.gov.au |