Terri Butler (Griffith, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Last year I heard a constituent speak about being brutally beaten and left for dead, when she was six months pregnant. She is now a well-known advocate for taking more action against domestic and family violence. Last year I visited the Women's Legal Service in Annerley, which I understand is fortunate to have the member for Moreton's wife as a volunteer. They told me that they are really stretched. They said they had helped 3,200 women in the previous year, but there were 16,000 more who had tried to get help but could not.

RISE Queensland visited me in Canberra to call for more action on family violence. Women's House told me they were worried about the state of Queensland's domestic violence laws. And just last week Dame Quentin Bryce released a special task force report on domestic and family violence in my home state. She said:

… there are about 180 reports to police of domestic violence incidents in Queensland every day.

The report includes testimony from people who assisted the task force, like the contributor who said:

The violence would consist of him punching me, spitting on me, choking me, depriving me of sleep and threatening others would kill or rape me. I was often left bruised with multiple contusions, black eyes, pain, on occasion concussion and living in great fear for my life …

Also, this week the bipartisan Parliamentarians Against Family Violence heard from Rosie Batty, whose story everyone here knows. Everyone here knows that stopping domestic and family violence should be squarely at the centre of our national agenda.

As the Queensland special task force report says, 'domestic and family violence is gendered'. As Bill Shorten has said:

There is no clearer symbol of continuing gender inequality in our society than the epidemic of violence against women. The biggest risk factor for being a victim of family violence is being a woman.

…   …   …

17 per cent of Australian women have experienced physical or sexual violence by a current or previous partner …

As the Deputy Leader of the Opposition said, that is nearly one in five.

Eliminating domestic and family violence will take more than talk. But talk is still crucial. Domestic and family violence needs to be at the centre of the national debate if it is to be eliminated. There must be talk and, of course, there must be action. Without continued discussion of this issue it will be allowed to fall off the agenda, as it has periodically in the past. We cannot let that happen.

Today, Labor has called on the Prime Minister to hold a national crisis summit on family violence. We know that women need to be able to get legal support and to find somewhere safe to go. We want to make sure they have both of those things. To make that happen we want the Commonwealth state and territory governments to conduct a national crisis summit on violence against women, separate from COAG. Governments must agree to implement urgently coordinated judicial and social services reform. A national crisis summit on violence against women would bring together community legal services, researchers, experts and advocates. It is the best way for stakeholders to lay down the key policy challenges and the changes needed for addressing family violence, in an open and transparent way.

Labor's interim package that we have announced would deliver more than $70 million in targeted funding to ensure those suffering from family violence can access critical services. We would commit $50 million to frontline legal services, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander legal services, to make sure that women suffering from family violence have appropriate legal support. The aim of this is to ensure that, at least, the women facing court have access to appropriate legal services during what is a very difficult time. We will also make an initial investment of $15 million in Safe at Home grants to help people affected by family violence stay safe in their own home. In addition, Labor will invest $8 million in perpetrator mapping, which looks at interactions across family violence, law enforcement, justice, child protection and related systems, to help identify opportunities to prevent violence through information sharing.

Labor's plan is for a national crisis summit on violence against women, and for interim measures. We developed that plan in consultation with experts, academics and advocates like Rosie Batty. Like my colleagues I urge the Prime Minister to work with Labor as a matter of urgency to convene the summit. If not, we will do it within the first 100 days of a Shorten Labor government. This must stop, and we all have an obligation to do our part.

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