tabled in the House of Assembly on Friday by Home Affairs and Public Safety Minister Maxwell Burgess .

The main purpose of the Stalking Amendment Act 1998 is to empower a Police officer to arrest a person whom the Police officer has reasonable cause to suspect has committed or is committing the offence of stalking.

The amendment calls for such a person to be brought before the courts within 48 hours of being arrested or "as soon as reasonably practicable after the arrest''.

Other amendments in the bill give the court the okay to make a temporary protection order in respect of a complainant, a victim or a "connected person'' following an arrest.

And the new law will grant Police the power to enter premises without a warrant under certain circumstances.

Police officers will be able to enter premises when they have reasonable cause to suspect that a protection order is being contravened and where they have reasonable cause to suspect that a person is committing the offence of stalking.