persons, the community (on whose behalf the Director prosecutes), victims and others – the right to a fair trial.

The Director has taken the following steps to respect, protect and promote human rights:

• during training sessions and continuing legal education presentations, prosecutors are reminded of the ethics and obligations of the prosecutor and, in particular, the terms of the Human Rights Act 2004;
• the DPP’s library has a collection of material relevant to human rights that is available as a resource to assist prosecutors in the discharge of their duties, and in particular to inform themselves on the legislative scrutiny process;
• prosecutors ensure that the trials of persons alleged to have committed criminal offences are fair and accord with human rights law;
• the employment of witness assistants in the Office recognises the need to ensure that the rights of victims are respected; and
• the Director publicly promotes human rights values.

The Office does not initiate new legislative proposals; however officers are aware of the legislative scrutiny process. Similarly, while the Office has no formal role in reviewing legislation, officers are alert to the human rights implications of the operation of legislative provisions.

Litigation

From time to time, applications are made in cases to which the prosecution is a party that purport to invoke the Human Rights Act. Typically these are cases where delay is relied upon to support an application for a stay of the prosecution.

C.12 Strategic Bushfire Management Plan

The Office is neither a manager of unleased Territory Land nor an owner (ie: lessee or occupier) of Territory Land and does not have reporting requirements under the Emergencies Act 2004 (Section 85).

C.13 Strategic Asset Management

The Office is located in the Reserve Bank Building, adjacent to the Supreme Court and Magistrates Court buildings.

The current utilisation rate is 21.3m2 per employee which is an increase on last year’s rate of 18.7m2. In February 2013 the office commenced occupation of a section of the second floor in the Reserve Bank building. This was necessary to deal with the additional space required for staff involved in responding to the Eastman Inquiry. The utilisation rate is based on a benchmark of 15.9m2 per employee. Seventy five staff occupied a total floor space of 1,600m2. Factors relevant to the utilisation rate include the need to provide facilities such as witness interview rooms, waiting rooms for vulnerable witnesses, a conference room, the criminal law resource centre, areas for professional staff undertaking sensitive and confidential work, and areas for confidentially dealing with acutely personal and intimate issues.

Energy reduction opportunities are limited due to the building being leased. However, strategies for reducing energy consumption are being pursued wherever possible.

The assets of the Office are mainly comprised of the Office fitout (partitioning and cabling) and the criminal law resource centre. Total replacement costs are estimated at $2m.

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013				¦ 57
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