Victorian Consolidated Legislation

Children's Services Act 1996 - SECT 42A

Power of Secretary to obtain information, documents and evidence

42A. Power of Secretary to obtain information, documents and evidence





(1) If the Secretary believes that a person who is or has been a licensee, a
nominee or a staff member of a children's service or a family day carer is
capable of providing information, producing documents or giving evidence
relating to a matter that constitutes, or may constitute, a contravention of
section 26, 27 or 28, the Secretary may, by notice in writing, require that
person-

   (a)  to provide to the Secretary, by writing signed by that person or, in
        the case of a body corporate, by the person who is or was nominated by
        the licensee to represent the licensee in relation to the application
        and the operation of the children's service, within the time and in
        the manner specified in the notice, that information; or

   (b)  to produce to the Secretary, or to a person specified in the notice
        acting on the Secretary's behalf, in accordance with the notice, those
        documents; or

   (c)  to appear before the Secretary, or a person specified in the notice
        acting on the Secretary's behalf, at a time and place specified in the
        notice to give that evidence, either orally or in writing, and produce
        those documents.

(2) The Secretary or the person specified in the notice acting on the
Secretary's behalf may require the evidence referred to in subsection (1)(c)
to be given on oath or affirmation and for that purpose may administer an oath
or affirmation.

(3) A person must not-

   (a)  refuse or fail to comply with a notice under this section to the
        extent that the person is capable of complying with it; or

   (b)  in purported compliance with a notice under this section, knowingly
        provide information or give evidence that is false or misleading; or

   (c)  obstruct or hinder the Secretary in exercising a power under this
        section.

Penalty: 120 penalty units.

(4) Subject to subsection (5), a person is not excused from answering a
question, providing information or producing, or permitting the inspection of,
a document on the ground that the answer, information or document may tend to
incriminate the person.

(5) Despite subsection (4), the answer by a person to any question asked in a
notice under this section or the provision by a person of any information in
compliance with a notice under this section, is not admissible in evidence
against the person-

   (a)  in the case of a person not being a body corporate-in any criminal
        proceedings other than proceedings under this section; or

   (b)  in the case of a body corporate-in any criminal proceedings other than
        proceedings under this Act.