Zali Steggall (Warringah, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) notes that:

(a) domestic and intimate partner violence is a national crisis and whilst impacting all genders, the casualties are overwhelmingly women;

(b) on average in Australia, one woman per week is murdered by her current or former partner;

(c) as of 4 February 2024, six women have been allegedly murdered by their male partner in Australia;

(d) in the year 2021-22, 5,606 women were hospitalised due to family and domestic violence, an average of 15 women per day;

(e) the number of Australian women killed by their partners each year has not changed significantly in over 30 years;

(f) women often experience multiple incidents of violence across their lifetime; and

(g) the men who abuse, violate and murder women are not so-called 'good blokes' and any such notion must be called out each and every time a woman faces violence at the hands of a male partner or male they know; and

(2) calls on the Government to:

(a) urgently convene a crisis National Cabinet meeting of federal, state and territory ministers to:

(i) ensure the National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children 2022-2032 is bringing about the required action and policies to prevent violence against women and children across Australia;

(ii) commission, a review of all state criminal sentencing provisions and the use of character references for domestic violence and gender-based abuse to ensure they are fit-for-purpose in holding perpetrators of violence against women to account;

(iii) increase the capacity of specialist services to assist women fleeing domestic violence to stay alive, such crisis support, appropriate accommodation, leave advice and advocacy and income support and ensure they are properly funded;

(iv) fully fund proven programs that save lives, such as 'Staying Home Leaving Violence', which been shown by research to be an effective contributor to the long-term safety and housing stability of women and children who have left a violent and abusive relationship; and

(v) agree on further concrete, measurable and streamlined efforts at all levels of government based on sound evidence to bring down the horrific number of cases of domestic violence against women and children from this year.

Domestic and intimate partner violence is a national crisis. Whilst impacting all genders, the casualties are overwhelmingly women. Sixty-four women were allegedly killed as a result of domestic violence in Australia in 2023. That means that, on average, one woman per week is murdered by her current or former partner. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women are three times more likely to experience violence than non-Indigenous women, 11 times more likely to die due to assault and 34 times more likely to be hospitalised as a result of that violence. Despite successive governments' well-meaning efforts, little progress has been made in 30 years.

When I submitted this motion last week, as of 4 February, six women had already allegedly been murdered by their male partner in Australia. As of 10 February, that number is now eight. In the year 2021-22, 5,606 women were hospitalised due to family and domestic violence—an average of 15 women per day. If people were being killed by any other means at this rate in this country, it would spark national outrage and be deemed a crisis and an emergency. We have seen government react in such a way to a recent High Court ruling on immigration detention, to needles in strawberries and to one-punch attacks. We see state and federal governments act with urgency when they feel that the situation requires it. Domestic and intimate partner violence is such a crisis. We need a crisis response: action, mobilisation of resources and urgent legislation.

When another woman becomes a domestic violence statistic, we witness sympathy in this place and hand-wringing but not much more. Mere condolences won't suffice. We need tangible action. In Warringah, the Northern Beaches Women's Shelter is currently turning away approximately 25 women a month because they're full. They need more affordable housing and more transitional and emergency accommodation. Women and Children First, in northern Sydney, are funded to help 208 women a year. Last year they helped 836. There are fewer than 350 police domestic violence reports, yet the services are telling us more than double that number are seeking help. Our bureaucratic systems are not set up to protect women. A few weeks ago, I relayed these resourcing issues directly to the state Minister for the Prevention of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault, Jodie Harrison. I wrote to the Prime Minister just last week, seeking to discuss this national catastrophe and ask him to take more urgent action.

Today, through this motion, I call on the Albanese government to urgently convene a crisis National Cabinet meeting of federal, state and territory ministers to ensure that the National Plan to End Violence Against Women and Children is bringing about the required action. That is because this plan spans a 10-year period, and we simply cannot wait till 2032 to realise whether or not it is working. We must have clear KPIs, clear progress, change and increased action when required. Policies to prevent violence against women and children across Australia must be assessed against clear metrics of whether or not they are working. Time is of the essence.

I call on the government to commission a review of all state criminal sentencing provisions and the use of character references for domestic violence and gender based abuse so that we can ensure they are fit for purpose in holding perpetrators of violence against women to account. In the judicial system, our sentencing laws are meant to be a deterrent. They are clearly not a deterrent at the moment, given the current rate of offending. We cannot have any more of the 'good bloke defence'. You know the one. It's the one that says: 'He's really just a normal guy. He's really a nice guy. I don't quite understand how this happened.' Enough with the 'good bloke defence'!

We need to increase the capacity of specialist services to assist women fleeing domestic violence to stay alive: crisis support, appropriate accommodation, leave advice, advocacy and income support. In New South Wales, the Staying Home Leaving Violence program is a proven way to assist women, yet it is not funded and delivered across all local government areas.

There are many concrete actions the government can take. I call on the Albanese government to continue to act with urgency on the crisis of domestic violence.

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