Review of Queensland’s police move-on powers
Overview
'Move-on' powers form part of the police response to public order issues in Queensland. These powers enable police officers, in certain circumstances, to issue a direction requiring an individual or groups to move on or to leave a public place. Police have had these powers since 1997, but until 2006, their use was restricted to certain geographical locations.
New laws passed in 2006 made these powers available to police in all public places statewide. They also required the CMC to review how Queensland police were using the powers, including:
- when and where they were being used and who they were being used against
- how police were dealing with people who failed to obey a move-on direction
-
positive or negative consequences arising from use of the powers in Queensland.
Our review showed a steady increase in use of the powers over time, but indicated that this was likely to be associated with the geographical expansion of the powers across Queensland rather than to overzealous policing.
Related documents and links
Report |
Police move-on powers: a CMC review of their use (PDF, 1.3 MB) Data report (PDF, 1.6 MB) |
Issues paper |
Review of Queensland's police move-on powers: invitation for public comment (PDF, 190 KB) (2008) |
Submissions |
|
Government response |
Queensland government response to the CMC review (PDF, 850KB) (April 2011) (PDF, 850 KB) |
Media releases and statements |
CMC reviews use of police move-on powers (21.12.2010) CMC call for comment on police move-on powers (11.12.2008) |
Related links |
Policing public order: a review of the public nuisance offence (PDF, 2.5 MB) (CMC, May 2008) |
