Urgent legislative amendment of the Bail Act including that:

4.1. section 4AA(2)(c) is repealed (‘double uplift’);

4.2. clause 1 of Schedule 2 is repealed (including any indictable offence in certain circumstances within reverse onus regime);

4.3. clause 30 of Schedule 2 is repealed (including bail offences within reverse onus regime);

4.4. section 18(4) is repealed;

4.5. section 30 is repealed (failure to answer bail);

4.6. section 30A is repealed (contravention of conduct condition of bail);

4.7. section 30B is repealed (commit indictable offence on bail);

4.8. section 18AA is amended so that – 4.8.1. an applicant for bail need not establish ‘new facts and circumstances’ before making a second application for bail; and 4.8.2. an applicant for bail who is vulnerable (for instance, by virtue of being an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person, a child, or a vulnerable adult as these terms are defined in sections 3 and 3AAAA, respectively, of the Bail Act) need not establish ‘new facts and circumstances’ before making any subsequent application for bail;

4.9. section 3A is amended to include more guidance to BDMs about the procedural and substantive matters to be considered to ensure application of the section gives effect to the purposes for which it was inserted, including to address the persistent overrepresentation of Aboriginal people in the criminal justice system;

4.10. revision of section 3A should occur in a manner that is consistent with principles of self determination of First Nations peoples;

4.11. section 4E(1)(a)(ii) is amended to narrow the scope of commit ‘offence’ while on bail;

4.12. before a BDM refuses bail to an Aboriginal person, they are required by law to articulate (and record) what enquiries were made into the surrounding circumstances and what factors relevant to sections s3A and s3AAA of the Bail Act were considered to reach the decision;

4.13. BDMs intending to refuse an application for bail are required by law to make all necessary enquiries about, and where necessary note on any remand warrant, any potential custody management issues.