Zali Steggall MP Calls for a Royal Commission into Domestic Violence

Описание: Zali Steggall:
In recent times, federal governments have called royal commissions into veteran suicide, aged care, anti-Semitism and social cohesion. Last year, the Prime Minister said Australia faced a domestic violence crisis, with one woman being killed every four days. Will the government elevate the safety of women and children to the same level of urgency and attention by calling a royal commission into femicide and domestic violence?

Minister for Social Services:
Thank you, Mr Speaker, and I want to thank the member for Warringah for her question. I know the member for Warringah and for Kooyong and for Mackellar have written to the Prime Minister in similar terms and I absolutely understand where they're coming from and the intent of their letter. And this question and the government absolutely agrees with the urgency of the issues that the member for Warringah is raising. But the truth is and frontline workers will tell you this, we don't need another royal commission to tell us what's happening with the deaths of women in Australia and what we need to do. In fact, frontline workers have been very clear that they don't want another report, they want the implementation of the work that we're doing right now. Last year, the domestic Family and Sexual Violence Commissioner's annual report to parliament pointed out that we have 1000 recommendations from at least eight major royal commissions, inquiries and reviews. Most recently, we had the rapid review that the National Cabinet commissioned on the behest of the Prime Minister and the premiers. We're implementing that work right now. We've had the South Australian royal commission most recently the NT coronial inquest, many parliamentary inquiries, the Victorian royal commission. We need to get on with the work of implementing these recommendations and we are right now there are 583 initiatives happening around the country, 122 of those are Commonwealth led. They're being reported on publicly. Every family violence peak body in this country released a statement that said, and I quote, Royal commissions have an important role in the Australian system, including gathering evidence when we have no other way to get to the root of a problem. That is not the situation here. The evidence is clear. We know what needs to be done to prevent, respond to and help people heal from family violence. That's why this government has invested $4 billion in those 122 initiatives that I spoke about a minute ago. It's why we're working so closely with the states and territories that are responsible for policing, for courts, for the justice system and the day to day operation of domestic violence refuges. And it's why we're about to start the consultation on the Second Action Plan, on the National Plan on violence against women and their Children. That will be a very important opportunity to say what comes next in the implementation of these recommendations. The member for Warringah and other members will have the opportunity of making contributions at that time. Frontline workers absolutely will be part of designing that Second Action Plan, as will victims and survivors of family, domestic and sexual violence. We agree with you. The member for Warringah and the members for Kooyong and Mackellar about the urgency of this. And I would say that every Member of Parliament agrees with the urgency, but we don't need more reports. We need to we need to focus on the actions that will make a difference.