Amended protest law passes Tas upper house

THE Tasmanian government has watered down its controversial anti-protest laws to pass the state's upper house.

DESIGNED by the Liberal government to shield workers from radical protesters in industries including forestry and mining, the proposed law in its original form included mandatory minimum jail sentences of three months for repeat offenders.

But in amendments passed by the Legislative Council on Thursday, the government agreed to scrap the mandatory sentencing which had sparked widespread outrage among human rights advocates including the United Nations.While mandatory sentencing has been removed, the new agreement lifts the maximum possible jail sentence for the offence from two to four years, handing discretion to the courts.There are also fines of up to $10,000 for individuals."It was disappointing that the Legislative Council narrowly voted to remove mandatory sentences," Resources Minister Paul Harriss said of Thursday's outcome.The Liberal government won power in March vowing to revive Tasmania's traditional industries and let workers get on with their jobs without the fear of interruption."Tasmania will now have the strongest legislation in the country to protect the rights of workers to lawfully earn a living, while ensuring the right to free speech and legitimate protest have been protected," Mr Harriss said.Labor's Michelle O'Byrne said the backdown on mandatory sentencing was an embarrassment for the government."It's worth pointing out that to save face, the Liberals introduced their own amendments to remove mandatory penalties," she said.The bill now returns to the lower house where the government has the numbers for it to pass parliament.

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