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Gordon A-CJ Steward J Gleeson J

17 The Attorney-General must, before the end of an applicable non-parole period, either make or refuse to make an order for the parole of an offender. In making this decision, the Attorney-General may have regard to a range of matters identified in s 19ALA(1) of the Crimes Act that are known to him or her and which are relevant to the decision. These include the risk to the community if the offender were to be released; the offender's conduct whilst serving their sentence; the offender's satisfactory completion of any programs that have been ordered by a court or otherwise recommended; and the likely effect on the victim, or the victim's family, of the offender's release. Consideration of these matters is not subject to s 16A(1) and (2) of the Crimes Act.

18 In 2019, s 19ALB of the Crimes Act was introduced into Div 5. The Revised Explanatory Memorandum to the Bill which, when enacted, inserted s 19ALB into the Crimes Act describes the provision as creating a "presumption against parole" for persons convicted of certain terrorism offences, or who have been subject to a control order, or who have made statements or carried out activities supporting, or advocating support for, terrorist acts. The presumption was said to have been enacted in response to a "terrorist incident" which had taken place in 2017 involving a person who killed a man whilst on parole. This led to a meeting of the Council of Australian Governments which prompted the enactment of s 19ALB. The presumption against parole was said to give primacy to the first purpose of parole set out in s 19AKA of the Crimes Act, namely the