Melissa McIntosh (Lindsay, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Special Minister of State and Minister Assisting the Prime Minister and Cabinet. What are the next steps for implementing the National Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Child Sexual Abuse? How will it raise awareness of child sexual abuse and help victims and survivors?

Ben Morton (Tangney, Liberal Party, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister and Cabinet) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for her questions. Sadly, child sexual abuse in Australia is growing. Between 2014 and 2019 the number of sexual assaults against children and young people recorded by police increased by 21 per cent. Percentages can tell you part of the story, but that increase is from 13,353 to 16,140 individual reports. Online reports of child abuse from April-June 2019 compared with April-June 2020 increased by 122 per cent.

In October the Prime Minister launched the National Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Child Sexual Abuse. That strategy has been endorsed by government leaders from all of the states and territories. The consultation that went into that strategy commenced in 2018 and built on the royal commission findings. The strategy is a 10-year, whole-of-government approach to preventing and better responding to child sexual abuse in all settings. The strategy will focus on education, supporting victims and survivors, enhancing national responses to children with harmful sexual behaviours, offender prevention and intervention, and additional support for evidence and research.

I'm pleased that the strategy has been welcomed by those in the sector. Dr Michael Salter, who's the Scientia Associate Professor for Criminology from the University of New South Wales said that the national strategy is values driven, it's practical, incorporating cutting edge evidence and policy design to prevent abuse before it occurs and promotes the rights and wellbeing of survivors. It is the most comprehensive plan to tackle child sexual abuse in Australia's history and will set a global benchmark. Hetty Johnston, the founder of Bravehearts, said that all that knowledge gained from the royal commission is powerfully wrapped up in digestible actions for organisations and people everywhere so it never happens again.

Over the coming months, the National Office for Child Safety will establish formal stakeholder consultation mechanisms in relation to the rollout of the strategy. They will have a strong focus on engaging with victims and survivors and hearing from priority groups who are disproportionately impacted by child sexual abuse. The national office will also engage with those in the not-for-profit sector and non-government stakeholders and with government stakeholders at state and territory level to develop targeted resources for all priority groups. This is important work of this government. I know it's supported by those opposite, it's supported by all the territory and state governments, and it's important that those victims survivors who provided evidence to the royal commission know that we are getting on with this important work.