Michelle Ananda-Rajah (Higgins, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

We partly came to government on a rising tide of young people who were disaffected with the stale politics of the previous administration, but it is clear that we have much to do. There is a generation of young people who simply do not feel like they are heard, and they can identify the issues; they relate to the intergenerational divide and to climate justice. The issues that come up time and time again are climate, housing, wealth creation and financial security, noting that many young people have cottoned on to the fact that the 'bank of mum and dad' has become the default wealth distributor in this country.

Young people feel left out of the conversation, and we in the Albanese government are well aware of this. That is why we established the federal Office for Youth—to rebuild trust with young people and to create a structural mechanism to embed their voices in government to influence and shape policy. In addition to this, we established the Youth Steering Committee, made up of 14 diverse young people, and we have also extended this with advisory groups. The previous year, we had advisory groups on climate change and energy; Indigenous Australians; mental health and suicide prevention; industry and science; and social services.

When it comes to the voices of young people, they are wise beyond their years. Sophie, in my electorate, speaks about violence against women and children. She says: 'Currently, the court system is a long and exhausting process that for me lasted four years, from the time I was 12 to the time I was 16, and no statistic can demonstrate what I went through. I was forced to grow up in year 7. When most of my friends' greatest worries were their next maths test, I had to think about him being around the corner or showing up at my house or my school, despite the restraining orders and talks to mediators, who insisted on phone calls, telling me I could leave the room if I felt uncomfortable. When I did, often in tears, I was rushed back only to continue, constantly having to talk to court representatives to get my side of the story in there.' She says: 'We must improve how we treat young people in court, treating victims and children alike with respect and compassion and as people. We need to educate both men and women about what domestic violence is and work on prevention.'

Hear, hear, Sophie! That is why we introduced reforms this year to put victims-survivors at the centre of our response in the justice system. We are investing $14.7 million into criminal justice reform to improve the way the criminal justice system responds, so it doesn't retraumatise victims. This includes establishing an Australian Law Reform Commission inquiry into law reform and investing $8.2 million towards small-scale trials for primary prevention and early intervention, in a national first. These trials will build the evidence base and help guide our response.

This is from Lotus, who speaks about the intergenerational divide: 'The gap between the rich and the poor is widening rapidly in Australia. It is undeniable that every child deserves a high-quality education to prepare them for their futures because, if we don't secure the success of the next generations, then how can we expect our country to prosper? Neglecting our children is a form of national self-harm, and, as Australians, we all must demand to do better. Regardless of their socioeconomic status, Aussie kids deserve the best education.' Hear, hear. We're currently working on extensive reforms in early childhood education, the middle years and indeed the university sector through the Universities Accord process.

This is from Maxine: 'Words matter. Words have morphed into a vessel which we as humans use to effectively communicate and yet they have surpassed such rudimentary origins. Discriminative language manifests itself in the form of micro-aggressions subtly disguised within colloquial speech, everyday slang and seemingly harmless jokes. What alarms me is that countless people are unaware of the prejudiced origins of the words they use.' Maxine refers to the power of language—language that gets thrown around casually yet can be damaging and tears at our social fabric. It is something that is highly pertinent to the times we live in, and I congratulate her. (Time expired)

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