Helen Polley (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on Senator Bartlett’s matter of urgency relating to the need for all political parties to make child protection a national priority and the even greater need for governments to work together to determine ways to reduce the completely unacceptable level of serious child abuse and neglect that is occurring across the Australian community. As we are all well aware, last week was Child Protection Week, and the Democrats’ motion, supported by Labor, calling for a nationwide approach to child protection was not supported by the coalition in its original form.

Child abuse is a scourge in our society that all too often remains hidden, and therefore it is a difficult topic for governments to tackle. Unfortunately, although the number of cases is on the rise and the incidence of abuse and neglect is growing, the subject seems, far too often, to fall into the too-hard basket. Recently I attended a forum on families and homelessness at Levi House in Launceston, which was attended by representatives from local community organisations. There, I was reminded of the many problems that are facing Australian families and the strain that is being placed on families, not just in Tasmanian communities but in communities nationwide. We all know that problems that are ignored do not just go away. What is needed is a national, bipartisan approach to child protection. The cycle Senator Evans alluded to—in which a terrible story of abuse draws calls for immediate action, only for the issue to disappear when the story vanishes from the newspapers—must end now.

Yesterday during question time we saw the Minister representing the Minister for Family and Community Services, Senator Kemp, fail to explain why the government has failed to act on the recommendations of the 2004 Senate Community Affairs References Committee report Forgotten Australians and the 2005 Senate Community Affairs References Committee report Protecting vulnerable children: a national challenge. Senator Kemp said he would refer the question to Minister Brough, but the time has come for answers, not more questions. The time has come for a unified, whole-of-government approach to stopping child abuse and neglect before it occurs. Both reports by the committee recommended the installation of a national commissioner for children and young people.

Freedom from violence and safety from abuse are the basic rights of all people. Children are only different in that they often do not have the ability to stand up for their rights themselves. They require our protection. It is the responsibility of all levels of government to ensure that the law is upheld and our children are protected from abuse and violence. Recent figures relating to the incidence of abuse are alarming. Suspected cases have doubled in number since 1999-2000. According to Australia’s leading national child abuse prevention agency, the NAPCAN Foundation, in 2004, 220,000 reports of child abuse were made—a figure equal to one report for every 25 children in Australia.

Child abuse is arguably Australia’s worst social problem. The statistics are frightening. In Australia, a child is abused every 13 minutes. Adam Blakester, Chief Executive of NAPCAN, said in a recent statement:

The appropriate and urgent response required today needs to address the underlying root causes of child abuse, or else the cycle of abuse will only continue. This would form the basis of a National Child Abuse Prevention Strategy, targeting all Australian children.

Unfortunately, we all know that the figures are just the beginning. With every case that is reported, there are countless others that will remain unknown, and the problem will continue to grow. The time for action is now. Child abuse and neglect is not limited to Indigenous communities, although it is recognised that Indigenous victims are over-represented in statistics. The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare’s Child protection Australia 2004-05 report found that not only is the number of victims of child abuse increasing but the seriousness of cases continues to worsen, particularly those involving substance abuse, mental health and family violence.

The AIHW report has also revealed an over-representation of sole parent families in confirmed abuse cases. In today’s society, the breakdown of the traditional family unit and the higher incidence of sole parent families may be a reason why the incidence of abuse is on the way up. NAPCAN stated that sole parent families are more likely to have low incomes, be financially stressed, be socially isolated or have less support from their immediate family. It also stated that these are all factors that have been associated with child abuse and neglect.

Intergovernmental cooperation is the only way to develop strategies to respond to these sorts of situations. In some cases, abuse occurs due to pressures being placed on parents who may be new to parenting or who may be suffering from their own ailments, including mental health problems or depression. In many cases, abuse can be avoided if appropriate support services are instigated before the situation degenerates. If we do not act and work together now to stop the incidence of abuse and neglect in our communities, the statistics will continue to rise. It is worth remembering that the statistics are not just numbers—behind every statistic there is a young person, a child, who deserves protection.

Labor supports this urgency motion to make child protection a national priority and calls for a whole-of-government approach to develop strategies to reduce the incidence of abuse. Australia’s young people are our future, and Labor is prepared to work with the Howard government and other parties to stop the abuse and neglect of Australian children. We need national leadership on this very important issue.