Victorian Current Acts Victorian Current Acts(1) The Victorian Inspectorate may at any time cause a report to be transmitted to each House of the Parliament on any matter relating to the performance of its duties and functions.
(2) If the Victorian Inspectorate intends to include in a report under this section adverse findings about a public body, the Victorian Inspectorate must give the relevant principal officer of that public body an opportunity to respond to the adverse material and fairly set out each element of the response in its report.
(3) If the Victorian Inspectorate intends to include in a report under this section a comment or an opinion which is adverse to any person, the Victorian Inspectorate must first provide the person a reasonable opportunity to respond to the adverse material and fairly set out each element of the response in its report.
(4) If the Victorian Inspectorate intends to include in a report under this section a comment or an opinion about any person which is not adverse to the person, the Victorian Inspectorate must first provide that person with the relevant material in relation to which the Victorian Inspectorate intends to name that person.
(5) If the Victorian Inspectorate is aware of a criminal investigation or criminal proceedings in relation to a matter or person to be included in a report under this section the Victorian Inspectorate must not include in the report any information which would prejudice the criminal investigation or criminal proceedings.
(6) If the Victorian Inspectorate is aware of an IBAC investigation in relation to a matter or person to be included in a report under this section the Victorian Inspectorate must not include in the report any information which would prejudice the IBAC investigation.
S. 87(6A) inserted by No. 16/2016 s. 182.
(6A) If the Victorian Inspectorate is aware of an investigation under the Judicial Commission of Victoria Act 2016 in relation to a matter or person to be included in a report under this section the Victorian Inspectorate must not include in the report any information which would prejudice the investigation under that Act.
S. 87(6B) inserted by No. 50/2021 s. 122, repealed by No. 31/2023 s. 37.
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(7) The Victorian Inspectorate must not include in a report under this section a statement as to—
(a) a finding or opinion that a specified person is guilty of or has committed, is committing or is about to commit, any criminal offence or disciplinary offence; or
(b) a recommendation that a specified person be, or an opinion that a specified person should be, prosecuted for a criminal offence or disciplinary offence.
(8) The Victorian Inspectorate must not include in a report under this section any information that would identify any person who is not the subject of any adverse comment or opinion unless the Victorian Inspectorate—
(a) is satisfied that it is necessary or desirable to do so in the public interest; and
(b) is satisfied that it will not cause unreasonable damage to the person's reputation, safety or wellbeing; and
(c) states in the report that the person is not the subject of any adverse comment or opinion.
(9) The Victorian Inspectorate must not include in a report under this section any information that—
(a) discloses the identity of a person to whom, or in respect of whom, a direction has been given under—
(i) Division 1 of Part 9 of the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission Act 2011 ;
S. 87(9)(a)(ii) substituted by No. 37/2014 s. 10(Sch. item 179.6).
(ii) Part 5 of the Victoria Police Act 2013 ; or
(b) is likely to lead to the identification of a person who has made an assessable disclosure.
S. 87(10) amended by No. 2/2019 s. 72(Sch. 1 Pt B item 11).
(10) However, the Victorian Inspectorate may in a report under this section include information to which section 53(2)(a), (c) or (d) of the Public Interest Disclosures Act 2012 applies.
(11) The Victorian Inspectorate must not include in a report under this section any information that—
(a) identifies, or is likely to identify, any person who is being, or has been, examined under the Major Crime (Investigative Powers) Act 2004 ; or
(b) the nature of any ongoing investigation of an organised crime offence within the meaning of the Major Crime (Investigative Powers) Act 2004 .
(12) Subject to subsection (13), if as a result of the inspection of the relevant records of Public Interest Monitors, the Victorian Inspectorate is of the opinion that there has been a contravention of the prescribed obligations, the Victorian Inspectorate may include in a report under this section a report on the contravention.
(13) A report for the purposes of subsection (12) must not contain information that—
(a) discloses or may lead to the disclosure of the identity of any person involved in an investigation relating to a relevant application made by a law enforcement agency within the meaning of section 19(5) of the Public Interest Monitor Act 2011 ; or
(b) indicates that a particular investigation has been, is being, or is to be, conducted.
(14) For the purposes of subsection (13), "investigation", law enforcement agency and relevant application have the meaning given by section 13(12).
S. 87(14A) inserted by No. 34/2016 s. 38.
(14A) A report for the purposes of subsection (12) that relates to the functions of the Public Interest Monitor under the Witness Protection Act 1991 must not include any information that would—
(a) prejudice a criminal investigation, criminal proceeding or other legal proceeding of which the Victorian Inspectorate is aware; or
(b) compromise the operational activities or methodologies of Victoria Police or of any authority or body referred to in the definition of approved authority in section 3(1) of the Witness Protection Act 1991 ; or
(c) disclose information about the identity or location, or compromise the security, of a person—
(i) who is or has been included in the Victorian witness protection program, within the meaning of the Witness Protection Act 1991 ; or
(ii) to whom alternative protection arrangements, within the meaning of the Witness Protection Act 1991 , are being or have been provided.
(15) The clerk of each House of the Parliament must cause the report to be laid before the House of the Parliament on the day on which it is received or on the next sitting day of that House of the Parliament.
(16) If the Victorian Inspectorate proposes to transmit a report to the Parliament on a day on which neither House of the Parliament is actually sitting, the Victorian Inspectorate must—
(a) give one business day's notice of intention to do so to the clerk of each House of the Parliament; and
(b) give the report to the clerk of each House of the Parliament on the day indicated in the notice; and
(c) publish the report on the Victorian Inspectorate's Internet website as soon as practicable after giving it to the clerks.
(17) The clerk of each House of the Parliament must—
(a) notify each member of the House of the Parliament of the receipt of the notice under subsection (16)(a) on the same day that the clerk receives that notice; and
(b) give a copy of the report to each member of the House of the Parliament as soon as practicable after the report is received under subsection (16)(b); and
(c) cause the report to be laid before the House of the Parliament on the next sitting day of the House of the Parliament.
(18) A report that is given to the clerks under subsection (16)(b) is taken to have been published by order, or under the authority, of the Houses of the Parliament.
(19) The publication of a report by the Victorian Inspectorate under subsection (16)(c) is absolutely privileged and the provisions of sections 73 and 74 of the Constitution Act 1975 and any other enactment or rule of law relating to the publication of the proceedings of the Parliament apply to and in relation to the publication of the report as if it were a document to which those sections applied and had been published by the Government Printer under the authority of the Parliament.
S. 88 inserted by No. 19/2012 s. 15, amended by Nos 82/2012 ss 56, 217, 279, 85/2012 s. 121.