2024–25 Pre-Budget Submission
The Law Council provided a submission to the Treasury for consideration in preparing the 2024–25 Budget.
The Law Council’s submission seeks to identify a number of important areas in which increased investment by the Australian Government, necessary to improve access to justice outcomes and to promote and uphold the rule of law, might be directed.
The Law Council acknowledges the current economic challenges faced both domestically and globally at the present time. However, it is in tough economic times that legal assistance services are most vital and should be prioritised. The preparation of the 2024–25 Budget coincides with the upcoming release of the Final Report of the Independent Review of the National Legal Assistance Partnership 2020–25 (NLAP). This provides a timely opportunity for the Australian Government to address the critical funding pressures facing legal assistance services and to ensure that they are able to meet increasing demands on the sector.
A focus of the Law Council’s submission is investment in initiatives that can assist in improving outcomes for individuals experiencing disadvantage—including older Australians, women and children experiencing family violence and those in places of detention—and support a greater number of people in enforcing their rights.
In upholding the democratic values, rule of law and the administration of justice, in Australia and the Pacific region, it is vital that the Australian Government invest in the institutions that currently underpin, or could enhance, the achievement of those fundamental ideals. The Law Council’s submission outlines the importance of additional funding in the federal courts and tribunals, and sets out a number of opportunities for investment in new agencies including a Federal Judicial Commission (FJC), a Federal Parole Authority and a Whistleblower Protection Authority (WPA).
Read the full submission below.
Last Updated on 30/01/2024