Drink Spiking

Ms ANGELA D'AMORE: My question is addressed to the Premier. What is the latest information on laws relating to drink spiking?

Mr MORRIS IEMMA: I thank the member for her interest in this insidious practice, something that is not harmless or funny. Victims experience trauma, which includes a variety of physical and emotional effects, not to mention the effect of any subsequent criminal acts. A report by the Australian Institute of Criminology about drink spiking found that up to 4,000 cases of drink spiking occur across Australia each year, the spiking agent most commonly used is alcohol, one-third of drink spikings involve sexual assault, four out of five victims are young women and only one in six cases of drink spiking is reported to police.

The Government has already acted to target this sinister practice. It has created the multi-agency drink spiking action group that has worked to make it easier to report drink spiking, educate bar tenders about what dangers to look out for in relation to this insidious practice, raise public awareness of the dangers of drink spiking when people are going out and reinforce that this behaviour is unacceptable and criminal. I announce that the Government will be introducing new laws creating a specific offence for drink and food spiking, making spiking a stand-alone offence for the first time punishable by two years jail and a fine of up to $11,000.

This morning Karen Willis of the New South Wales Rape Crisis Centre described these new laws as "excellent". This new offence will mean that instead of having to prove a suspect intended to rob or assault somebody after spiking their food or drink police will now be able to prosecute for the act of spiking in and of itself. The new offence is based on national model laws developed by the Model Criminal Law Officers Committee in July 2007 and is very similar to provisions that have been enacted recently in Western Australia, Queensland and South Australia. The new offence of food and drink spiking occurs where the perpetrator causes another person to consume an intoxicating substance in circumstances where the victim is not aware the drink or food contains the substance or that quantity of the substance, and the accused intends the victim to be harmed by the consumption of the drink or food.

So good natured and well-intentioned celebrations involving alcohol will not get one arrested but intending to harm someone by slipping them a stiff drink or a drug without their knowledge could land a person in serious trouble. The new offence will also contain a defence for health professionals who have to use medication in the course of their professional practice. I advise the House that our laws will also modernise the more serious offences in the Crimes Act that are relevant to drink spiking offences such as sexual assault and robbery where intoxicating substances are used, and make abundantly clear that they cover spiking events where only alcohol is used, the most commonly used drug in drink spiking. The legislation makes good on a commitment by the New South Wales Government to address community concern and crack down on this antisocial and dangerous behaviour.