Louise Miller-Frost (Boothby, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On behalf of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Law Enforcement, I present the committee's report on the committee visit to the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation.

Report made a parliamentary paper in accordance with standing order 39(e).

by leave—I rise to speak about the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Law Enforcement's report on its visit to the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation, in Brisbane. The committee became familiar with the important work of the centre, known as the ACCCE, in the course of its inquiry into law enforcement capabilities in relation to child exploitation. The committee reported on that inquiry in November 2023, with a thorough body of evidence, and made 15 recommendations, and I'm pleased to draw the attention of the House to that earlier report.

As part of the committee's ongoing concern about this issue, it was able to recently visit the ACCCE, in Brisbane, speak with its officers and learn more about the work in person. The committee met with staff from several ACCCE work areas, including the Victim Identification Unit, the Intelligence Fusion Cell and the Online Child Safety Team. It was a beneficial opportunity for committee members to ask questions about these officers' diverse and extensive work. For example, the Victim Identification Unit discussed its efforts to identify possible victims and offenders from seemingly unidentifiable indicators. The Online Child Safety Team explained some of the strategies that it employs to inform the community about the serious risks of child exploitation occurring online.

The committee was particularly interested in the welfare of officers involved in what can be harrowing work. We were impressed with the level of support provided to ensure the ongoing mental health of officers, and the commitment the officers had to their very valuable work, literally saving children.

The centre receives around 50,000 referrals a year, many from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, NCMEC, in the United States, and overseas sources. But it also receives referrals and information from the general public here in Australia. Each of those referrals is valuable. Some of the referrals they receive have very limited information, but thanks to the excellent work in the centre, we heard of some case studies where, based on a single image with no identifying information, they were able to identify the child and rescue them and identify the perpetrator and refer them for prosecution. While we heard of some very fast turnarounds between referral and arrest, a matter of days, we were also informed that no case is ever too cold to be reviewed. Cases remain open until they are solved, even if that takes, sadly, a decade or more.

Importantly, this centre also works on prevention, community education and awareness raising. They showed us some children's books they have developed to educate children and their parents about the safe use of social media and gaming platforms, and the difference between a friend you know and an online friend. The book, called Jack changes the game, is available via the centre's website, and I encourage parents, grandparents and teachers to look at it.

I thank the ACCCE for hosting us and for briefing the committee on its important work. Child exploitation is a terrible scourge on society, but Australians can have confidence in the tireless work of the ACCCE to disrupt and deter offenders who are seeking to harm children. I commend the committee's report to the House.

Dan Repacholi (Hunter, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I wish to make a short statement on the Joint Committee on Law Enforcement's report entitled Report on committee visit to the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation. Last month I joined my colleagues, committee chair Senator Helen Polley, deputy chair the member for Wide Bay, the member for Boothby and Senator David Shoebridge when we visited the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation in Brisbane.

The centre is a world-class collaborative hub where law enforcement, both public and private sectors, and civil society are brought together. By having all these different sections of society in one place, the centre can co-ordinate national projects that deter, disrupt and prevent child exploitation, with a specific focus on countering online child sexual exploitation. We met and spoke directly to staff from several work areas in the centre. We heard firsthand moving examples of how the centre has been directly involved in interventions where children have been rescued from abuse. We learnt about the challenges and opportunities officers face when countering these terrible crimes.

I would like to commend the specialised psychological support that is made available to officers that work in the centre. It was clear to us that supporting staff wellbeing is very important at the centre. During our visit we received a tour of the building and learnt how it is specifically designed to support the wellbeing of the staff there.

We applaud the extremely important and valuable work that is being done at the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation. We were highly impressed with the dedication of the officers who work there. It was not lost on us that these officers work in a highly confronting role. Officers can be required to review horrendous child abuse material to identify victims or investigate offenders. Our visit to the centre motivates the committee to continue to draw attention to our November 2023 report into law enforcement capabilities in relation to child exploitation. To fight these terrible crimes, which harm children both here at home in Australia and overseas, it is vital that law enforcement has the capabilities it needs in order to counter child exploitation.

The officers at the centre perform difficult tasks in service to our community to help protect children. We left the centre with a great sense of respect and admiration for these officers. I would like to thank the secretariat of the committee for arranging a visit for us. I would also like to extend our thanks to law enforcement officers around the nation who work on countering child exploitation, whether that be at the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation or elsewhere. Thank you for the work you do.