Mark Dreyfus (Isaacs, Australian Labor Party, Cabinet Secretary) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

The Family Law Amendment (Information Sharing) Bill 2023 is a significant step to ensure that children and families do not fall between the gaps of the federal family law system, and the state and territory family violence and child protection systems.

The Albanese government is firm in its view that ensuring the safety and wellbeing of children and their families is a priority. This includes their safety within the family law system.

This government has made its intentions on the family law system clear. This system must be safe, simpler to use, accessible, and deliver justice and fairness for all families accessing it. The government is delivering on this commitment through significant reform to the family law system, including through this bill.

Measures included in this bill are complementary to the reforms proposed in the Family Law Amendment Bill 2023. Both bills will work together to create a family law system which meets the needs of its users, centring on the voices and best interests of children, and ensuring their safety and wellbeing is the paramount consideration.

Family safety risk in family law matters

The disappointing reality is that family violence, child abuse and neglect continue to permeate our community. Court data from the last financial year offers a sobering glimpse into the prevalence of violence and abuse in family law matters:

And it must be acknowledged the true figures are likely higher.

The significant numbers of matters referred to state and territory child welfare agencies, and the prevalence of family violence and child abuse risk within family law matters, demonstrates a need to ensure these federal, state and territory systems are joined up when supporting and responding to the children and families accessing them.

The importance of a joined-up approach between systems has been examined and highlighted by the many reviews and inquiries into the family law system over the last decade. These inquiries, including the Australian Law Reform Commission's (ALRC's) 2019 report Family law for the future: an inquiry into the family law system (Report 135), have been integral to developing this bill and the National Strategic Framework for Information Sharing between the Family Law and Family Violence and Child Protection Systems(national framework) it implements.

A new framework for court-initiated orders for information sharing

This bill will operationalise key aspects of the national framework, enhancing the sharing of family violence, child abuse and neglect risk information between the family law courts and state and territory child protection, police and firearms authorities.

The family law courts do not have powers to investigate family violence, child abuse or neglect. They rely on the investigations conducted, and information provided, by state and territory agencies with those responsibilities.

The current legislative framework facilitating information sharing is limited in the information that can be sought by the courts and provided by these agencies. Expanding the information sharing framework within the act will ensure the family law courts are able to access all relevant family violence, child abuse and neglect information, providing a holistic picture of the risks to both the children and parties to proceedings.

This framework will provide powers for the courts to receive critical information earlier, quicker and throughout proceedings.

The new order for particulars introduced by this bill will support early information being provided to the courts about the types of documents or information held by agencies. This will assist not only in the making of early or urgent interim orders, but will inform the safe and appropriate case management and triaging of matters. The new order will also increase the efficiency of seeking production of full documents or information, by allowing the court to target the specific documents considered relevant.

The new order for production of documents or information will broaden the scope of information able to be sought. It will ensure the court has access to the full range of information it considers necessary to make orders in the best interests of the children, while considering the safety of all those involved.

Admission of information into evidence

A core tenet of the bill is balancing the principles of natural justice and procedural fairness against the potential risks associated with the disclosure of sensitive personal information.

The bill requires that the courts admit into evidence particulars, documents or information shared through the enhanced information sharing framework on which they intend to rely. In doing so, the court must have regard to specific advice provided by information sharing agencies about any risks associated with disclosure of information.

Safeguarding sensitive information—Exclusions

This bill recognises the inherently sensitive nature of family violence, child abuse and neglect information. The broader scope of this new information sharing framework necessitated considerations of protected material, and the inclusion of safeguards on the sharing of all family safety information.

Developed in consultation with frontline agencies and peak family violence and family law organisations, this bill includes protections where the disclosure of documents or information to be shared would:

In providing for the exclusion of these protected materials, the bill recognises there may be circumstances where the risk of disclosure is outweighed by the risk of non-disclosure.

In these circumstances, the bill provides avenues for information sharing agencies to provide this information to the courts in a restricted manner, and to communicate the additional risk they see as being associated with the disclosure of information.

The bill additionally recognises the importance of protecting confidential notifications made by mandatory reporters and everyday Australians concerning suspected family violence or child abuse. The court must protect the identity of notifiers, unless a limited exemption applies.

The limited circumstances in which the identity of these individuals can be disclosed ensures that this critical protection is only infringed in rare instances, where the information is crucial to the decision-making process in the parenting proceedings.

Safeguarding sensitive information—Information Sharing Safeguards

In addition to excluding protected materials, the bill includes a requirement for information sharing agencies, and the courts, to have regard to safeguards when sharing, using, accessing, storing and disclosing information.

The information sharing safeguards will be prescribed in amendments to the Family Law Regulations 1984, ensuring they can continue to evolve to reflect the best practice for the sharing of sensitive information.

These safeguards have been informed by a Privacy Impact Assessment commissioned by the Attorney-General's Department, and through consultation with relevant family law, family violence and child protection stakeholders.

It is envisaged that the information sharing safeguards will include items to ensure:

Information sharing agencies

Amendments to the regulations will additionally prescribe a broader set of information sharing agencies ahead of commencement of measures in this bill.

These agencies will include those state and territory agencies responsible for child protection and welfare, police, and firearms authorities.

The new prescription of agencies will also be clearer about the role of Commonwealth agencies, where they are performing functions for states and territories. Relevantly, that includes the Australian Federal Police when performing the policing function in the Australian Capital Territory.

The express inclusion of firearms authorities is the single biggest change to these agencies. This change is to support the court in understanding the holistic picture of family violence risk facing families and children.

We know that acrimonious family law proceedings can escalate family violence risk, including the risk of homicide for women and children.

Any death resulting from family violence is unacceptable.

The government is committed to ensuring that the family law system is safe for families, including those experiencing family violence. Achieving this commitment means learning from and understanding failings in the past, to create hope for the future.

Conclusion

In proposing these measures, the government thanks all those who contributed to the various reviews and inquiries which have influenced this bill.

In particular, the government recognises the contributions of individuals and families with lived experiences of family and domestic violence, the family law system, and its intersection with state and territory police and child protection systems. Your strength in sharing these experiences, and calling for reform, have been central to developing this bill.

Keeping children and families safe is at the heart of the family law system. This bill is one part of ensuring the family law system can deliver on this responsibility.

Debate adjourned.