Section 486O — Migration Act 1958: Commonwealth Ombudsman to give Minister assessment of detention arrangements

Commonwealth Ombudsman to give Minister assessment of appropriateness of detention arrangements (1) As soon as practicable after the Commonwealth Ombudsman receives a report under section 486N, he or she is to give the Minister an assessment of the appropriateness of the arrangements for the person’s detention. Assessment may include recommendations (2) The assessment may include any recommendations the Commonwealth Ombudsman considers appropriate. (3) Without limiting subsection (2), the kinds of recommendations the Ombudsman may make include the following: (a) a recommendation for the continued detention of a person; (b) a recommendation that another form of detention would be more appropriate for a person (for example, residing at a place in accordance with a residence determination); (c) a recommendation that a person be released into the community on a visa; (d) general recommendations relating to the Department’s handling of its detainee caseload. (4) The Minister is not bound by any recommendations the Commonwealth Ombudsman makes. Assessment to include statement for tabling in Parliament (5) The assessment must also include a statement, for the purpose of tabling in Parliament, that sets out or paraphrases so much of the content of the assessment as the Commonwealth Ombudsman considers can be tabled without adversely affecting the privacy of any person. Assessment to be given even if person no longer in detention (6) The Commonwealth Ombudsman must give the assessment to the Minister even if the person has, since the detention reporting time, ceased to be in immigration detention.