Video Camera Surveillance (Temporary Measures) Act 2011
Encyclopedia
The Video Camera Surveillance (Temporary Measures) Act 2011 is an Act of Parliament passed in New Zealand
in 2011. The law is a response to the Supreme Court
's ruling in Hamed & Ors v. R
, and is intended to legalise surveillance ruled unlawful by the courts.
issued its ruling in the case of Hamed & Ors v. R
, ruling that some evidence obtained by video surveillance of suspects in the 2007 New Zealand anti-terror raids
was gathered unlawfully and was inadmissible. Following the ruling, police dismissed charges against thirteen of the seventeen remaining suspects. On 19 September the New Zealand government announced that it had been advised that the decision meant that almost all covert video surveillance by police was unlawful and that it intended to legislate to reverse the decision.
The following week the government began to negotiate with other parties in an effort to gain backing for the bill. During the negotiation process a draft copy of the bill was leaked by the Labour Party via its blog Red Alert.
The proposed bill was criticised by lawyers, civil libertarians, and the media, and by the Mana
, Māori
and Green
parties. The Labour
and ACT parties agreed to support the bill only to select committee. This was sufficient for the bill to be introduced. An attempt by the Labour Party to compromise by using clauses from the Search and Surveillance Bill was rejected by the government as "legislative field surgery".
The bill passed its first reading 106-15 and was sent to the Justice and Electoral Select Committee for an abbreviated select committee process. The bill was heavily criticised by submitters, with the Criminal Bar Association calling it "legal magic dust", and constitutional lawyer Andrew Geddis an "overreaction". The New Zealand Human Rights Commission expressed concerns that it would damage New Zealand's international image, while former Prime Minister and architect of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990 Geoffrey Palmer labelled it "oppressive".
The bill was reported back on 3 October 2011, and substantially amended. The retrospective aspect of the bill was removed. Past surveillance would not be made lawful, but convictions obtained using evidence from such surveillance would not be able to be challenged.
The bill passed through its remaining stages under urgency on 6 October, passing its third reading 105-14, with the Greens, Māori Party, and Mana opposing. It was granted the Royal Assent
on 17 October, and became law the following day.
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
in 2011. The law is a response to the Supreme Court
Supreme Court of New Zealand
The Supreme Court of New Zealand is the highest court and the court of last resort in New Zealand, having formally come into existence on 1 January 2004. The court sat for the first time on 1 July 2004. It replaced the right of appeal to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, based in London...
's ruling in Hamed & Ors v. R
Hamed & Ors v. R
Hamed & Ors v. R NZSC 101 was a decision by the Supreme Court of New Zealand which ruled on the admissibility of video surveillance. The ruling held that evidence collected using criminal trespass on private land to conduct covert surveillance under a warrant is only admissible for serious crimes...
, and is intended to legalise surveillance ruled unlawful by the courts.
Background
On 2 September 2011 the Supreme Court of New ZealandSupreme Court of New Zealand
The Supreme Court of New Zealand is the highest court and the court of last resort in New Zealand, having formally come into existence on 1 January 2004. The court sat for the first time on 1 July 2004. It replaced the right of appeal to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, based in London...
issued its ruling in the case of Hamed & Ors v. R
Hamed & Ors v. R
Hamed & Ors v. R NZSC 101 was a decision by the Supreme Court of New Zealand which ruled on the admissibility of video surveillance. The ruling held that evidence collected using criminal trespass on private land to conduct covert surveillance under a warrant is only admissible for serious crimes...
, ruling that some evidence obtained by video surveillance of suspects in the 2007 New Zealand anti-terror raids
2007 New Zealand anti-terror raids
The 2007 New Zealand anti-terror raids were a series of armed police raids conducted on Monday, 15 October 2007, in response to the discovery of an alleged paramilitary training camp deep in the Urewera mountain range near the town of Ruatoki in the eastern Bay of Plenty...
was gathered unlawfully and was inadmissible. Following the ruling, police dismissed charges against thirteen of the seventeen remaining suspects. On 19 September the New Zealand government announced that it had been advised that the decision meant that almost all covert video surveillance by police was unlawful and that it intended to legislate to reverse the decision.
The following week the government began to negotiate with other parties in an effort to gain backing for the bill. During the negotiation process a draft copy of the bill was leaked by the Labour Party via its blog Red Alert.
The proposed bill was criticised by lawyers, civil libertarians, and the media, and by the Mana
Mana Party (New Zealand)
The Mana Party is a New Zealand political party led by Hone Harawira. It was formed in April 2011, and plans to contest the 2011 general election. Standing under the Mana Party banner, Mana won an early victory when Mr Harawira won the by-election in Te Tai Tokerau held on 25 June 2011...
, Māori
Maori Party
The Māori Party, a political party in New Zealand, was formed on 7 July 2004. The Party is guided by eight constitutional "kaupapa", or Party objectives. Tariana Turia formed the Māori Party after resigning from the Labour Party where she had been a Cabinet Minister in the Fifth Labour-led...
and Green
Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand
The Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand is a political party that has seats in the New Zealand parliament. It focuses firstly on environmentalism, arguing that all other aspects of humanity will cease to be of concern if there is no environment to sustain it...
parties. The Labour
New Zealand Labour Party
The New Zealand Labour Party is a New Zealand political party. It describes itself as centre-left and socially progressive and has been one of the two primary parties of New Zealand politics since 1935....
and ACT parties agreed to support the bill only to select committee. This was sufficient for the bill to be introduced. An attempt by the Labour Party to compromise by using clauses from the Search and Surveillance Bill was rejected by the government as "legislative field surgery".
Legislative history
The bill was introduced to the House under urgency on September 27, 2011. As introduced, the bill was retrospective, and declared video surveillance lawful no matter when it had occurred. This was intended to apply to "current prosecutions before the courts, convictions entered as the result of past prosecutions, and existing investigations involving the gathering of evidence for potential future prosecutions". The sole exception was the Hamed case. The bill would have effect for 12 months, allowing Parliament time to progress the earch and Surveillance Bill.The bill passed its first reading 106-15 and was sent to the Justice and Electoral Select Committee for an abbreviated select committee process. The bill was heavily criticised by submitters, with the Criminal Bar Association calling it "legal magic dust", and constitutional lawyer Andrew Geddis an "overreaction". The New Zealand Human Rights Commission expressed concerns that it would damage New Zealand's international image, while former Prime Minister and architect of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990 Geoffrey Palmer labelled it "oppressive".
The bill was reported back on 3 October 2011, and substantially amended. The retrospective aspect of the bill was removed. Past surveillance would not be made lawful, but convictions obtained using evidence from such surveillance would not be able to be challenged.
The bill passed through its remaining stages under urgency on 6 October, passing its third reading 105-14, with the Greens, Māori Party, and Mana opposing. It was granted the Royal Assent
Royal Assent
The granting of royal assent refers to the method by which any constitutional monarch formally approves and promulgates an act of his or her nation's parliament, thus making it a law...
on 17 October, and became law the following day.