Sharon Claydon (Newcastle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Child abuse is an abhorrent and a pervasive crime in Australia. I think it's important that we remember that it is, indeed, a crime. The impact on child sexual abuse survivors, over their lifetime, can be really extreme—as I say, lifelong, and debilitating. The effects include post-traumatic stress, the inability to form lasting relationships, identity difficulties, parenting difficulties, alcohol and substance abuse, depression, anxiety and suicide ideation, just to name some.

Sadly, child sexual abuse is not a new issue; it's been around a long time. We've had an entire royal commission into the types of sexual abuse that occurred in institutions that should have been our most trusted, but which failed, on every level, those children in their care. I'm from Newcastle, and we have an entire volume, and more, from the royal commission, attached to the sorts of horrific abuse that took place in those institutions over decades.

But this is not something of the past, either. It's an issue that, sadly and shockingly, seems to be seeing some increase in the Australian community. According to the ABS, more than one million women have experienced sexual abuse by the age of 15. Just let that sink in for a moment. Of those one million women who had experienced sexual abuse by the age of 15, 90 per cent knew the perpetrator. And 55 per cent of those perpetrators were relatives. So let's not assume that home is a safe place for everyone. With those stats in mind, I would say to the member for Herbert, who moved this motion, that this is no time to be self-congratulatory about the performance of the previous government. Any policy changes must be supported by robust evidence and prevent unintended risks to victims, survivors and the wider community.

The Albanese Labor government is deeply committed to protecting children from sexual abuse in all settings and to ensure criminal justice responses adequately reflect the profound harm that is caused to victims, survivors and communities. This includes working with all Australian jurisdictions under the National Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Child Sexual Abuse, a plan that spans from 2021 through to 2030, in order to combat all forms of child sexual abuse in all settings. The national strategy is underpinned by an investment from the Australian government of more than $160 million over four years in offender prevention and intervention measures—a critical part of addressing this issue. We've also launched a National Framework for Protecting Australia's Children and committed $30 million in the 2022-23 budget to support this national framework. Safe and Supported is an ambitious 10-year strategy, focused on making significant and sustained progress in reducing the rates of child abuse and neglect, and its profound intergenerational impacts. The first action plan from 2023 to 2026 and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander first action plan for the same period put the voices of children right at the centre of policymaking, and that's where they should be. The action plan sets out how governments, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders and the non-government sector must work together to help children, young people and families in need of support.

All governments agree that all children and young people in Australia have the right to grow up in safe, connected and supported environments in their families, communities and cultures. Decisions about child safety, whether through the courts, government or the community sector should always be evidence based and in the best interests of the child. That has to be the defining principle for lawmaking and decision-making in this country. To be very clear, this government will not tolerate the sexual abuse of children in any form. Our children deserve our protection and support, and we will continue to do everything we can to protect children here and overseas from exploitation and abuse.

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