The Directorate is responsible for reviewing and developing policy and legislation across the justice and community safety portfolio.
Our law enforcement regime maintains the public safety and social order of the community.
A variety of organisations and programs come together to identify and respond to crime, safety and justice priorities.
Information about the ways we promote, support and protect rights.
All about the Human Rights Act, how it works and the review process.
FOI gives members of the community a legally enforceable right to access documents held by government.
Access to a range of emergency response information.
Our emergency response framework.
Members of our community who respond in emergencies.
Safety considerations and information for personal and family wellbeing.
How we keep our community safe.
Information about the Infrastructure Safety and Security Grants Program.
Business obligations for safe workplaces.
Keeping ACT Government assets and information secure.
A national approach to security preparedness and planning.
How we keep safe on ACT roads.
The Directorate is responsible for legislation dealing with commercial regulation in the ACT.
In the ACT there are rights and responsibilities that regulate how business owners, their staff and their customers interact.
The Office of Regulatory Services undertakes activities to ensure compliance to regulations.
The Directorate educates the ACT community and industry on regulatory functions and obligations.
The Directorate is responsible to the Attorney-General, the Minister for Police and Emergency Services, the Minister for Workplace Safety and Industrial Relations and the Minister for Corrections.
The Directorate plays a vital role in providing information and advice to the Minister and supporting ACT representation in national fora.
The Directorate's responsibility for government activities of justice administration, rights protection, business regulation and emergency services.
ACT Corrective Services delivers adult correctional and detention services.
ACT Courts and Tribunal deliver justice through sentencing in criminal cases and rulings in civil cases.
The ACT Emergency Services Agency is responsible for emergency management planning and response.
The ACT Government Solicitor provides legal advice and services to the ACT Government and its agencies.
The Legislation and Policy Branch provides policy advice and research services to develop ACT policies and legislation.
The Office of Regulatory Services undertakes registration and business regulation functions.
The Parliamentary Counsel’s Office provides legislative drafting and publishing services for ACT legislation.
Policing services in the ACT are purchased from the Australian Federal Police.
The Security and Emergency Management Branch is responsible for protection and emergency planning for all hazards, including counter-terrorism.
A number of independent statutory agencies are administered under the portfolio umbrella of justice and community safety.
Victim Support ACT provides specialised assistance to help victims of crime participate in the justice process.
The Director of Public Prosecutions provides independent and effective criminal prosecution services.
Elections ACT is responsible for conducting elections and referendums for the ACT.
The ACT Human Rights Commission promotes the human rights and welfare of people living in the ACT.
The Public Advocate protects the interests, rights and dignity of vulnerable people and those with a disability.
The Public Trustee provides independent, professional trustee and asset management services.
The Work Safety Commissioner promotes and educates stakeholders on matters relating to workplace safety in the ACT.
Media information relating to the justice and community safety portfolio.
This section details the ways to contact the Department as well as agency locations.
This section provides access to our searchable database of publications.
A review of the ACT Graduated Licensing Scheme is being conducted in response to the continued over-representation of novice drivers in ACT road crash data and recent evaluations which have shown the benefits of additional GLS components in other jurisdictions.
Click here for more information.
A tip-off to ACT Policing has led to the recovery on Monday, March 25 of the dinosaur statue which was removed from the National Dinosaur Museum in Gold Creek.
Acting on information received, General Duties officers attended a residential address in Page where the 1.6-metre fibreglass Utahraptor was located in the rear sunroom of the home. The statue’s tail had been removed but was otherwise undamaged.
Officers from the Exhibit Management Centre were called to convey the statue to Belconnen Police Station, where the museum owners are planning to pick it up and return it to its original location.
A…
ACT Policing officers fitted over 200 vehicles with tamper-proof screws during a special crime prevention program conducted in conjunction with Gungahlin Marketplace on Saturday, March 23.
During a four hour fitting operation in the Gungahlin Marketplace carpark, police re-secured the registration plates of 284 vehicles with the special one-way screws designed to reduce the prevalence of plate theft.
The theft of registration plates is often the precursor to crimes such as petrol drive-offs, burglaries and traffic offences.
Members of ACT Policing’s current recruit class were involved in Project Safe Plate, as were members of Gungahlin Station, Crime Prevention and the…
On 19 March 2013 the ACT Attorney-General, Simon Corbell MLA, tabled the Government response to the ACT Law Reform Advisory Council’s report Beyond the Binary: legal recognition of sex and gender diversity in the ACT in the ACT Legislative Assembly.
For more information please click here.
As part of its multi-agency road safety strategy, ACT Policing actively targeted drink and drug-affected drivers between November and January. Police removed 343 drink-drivers from Canberra roads, as well as 10 drivers detected under the influence of illicit drugs.
During the same period last year, 383 drivers were apprehended for drink-driving and six drivers were found to be influenced by drugs.
The number of special drivers apprehended under the influence of alcohol also reduced; four were detected over the three-month period, compared with eight over the corresponding period in 2011-12.
Acting Superintendent Rod Anderson of Traffic Operations was disappointed in…
The Attorney-General, Mr Simon Corbell MLA, is seeking expressions of interest for membership of the Law Reform Advisory Council (LRAC). Expressions of interest are invited from individuals and representatives of organisations in the ACT who have a commitment to law reform and an understanding of legal issues in the ACT. Applications are encouraged from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, people with disabilities and people from a culturally diverse background. Further information can be found in the Call for Expressions of Interest.
ACT Policing has released CCTV footage of a man believed responsible for fraudulently obtaining money from Automatic Teller Machines (ATMs) last year.
Detectives from Criminal Investigations’ Fraud team have received more than 50 reports of unauthorised withdrawals from bank accounts via ATMs in November.
Investigations indicate skimming devices were attached to two ATMs, one in Mawson and the other in Civic. The information extracted from these skimming devices was used to fraudulently obtain money from seven ATMs across Canberra.
The skimming devices were removed from the ATMs prior to police or the banks being notified of the unexpected withdrawals.
Police…
The ACT Rural Fire Service Tidbinbilla Brigade will tonight, Tuesday 15 January, 2013, weather permitting, assist a private landholder with a hazard reduction burn at the property “Miowera”, Tidbinbilla Road, Tharwa.
The burn will commence from 7pm to 11pm.
One heavy tanker, one medium tanker, one command vehicle and eight personnel will conduct the burn of approximately one to two hectares in size.
The ACT Handy Map grid reference for the burn is I15.
The purpose of the burn is to remove a fuel hazard.
Temporary smoke cover may occur. Every effort is made to conduct…
The community is being reminded this morning to include in information in your Bushfire Survival Plan on how you will monitor developments and stay informed, if a fire starts in your local area.
Being aware of any potential threat to you, your family and your property from a bush or grass fire is critical on days with elevated fire danger.
The ACT Government will provide information about any fire that impacts on the community through the ACT Emergency Services Agency (ESA) website esa.act.gov.au and social media accounts, via local media outlets and the Canberra Connect Call Centre (13…
There are currently no bush or grass fires burning in the ACT.
Today’s fire danger in the ACT remains at HIGH with a forecast top temperature of 31 degrees.
The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) is predicting temperatures to increase tomorrow to 36 degrees and Saturday to 37 degrees, with strengthening west to north-westerly winds forecast for both days.
A decision will be made later today following an updated forecast from the BOM if a TOTAL FIRE BAN needs to be declared tomorrow.
The ESA advises you to make sure you know where you will get more…