Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

On behalf of the Chair of the Finance and Public Administration References, I present the final report of the committee's inquiry into domestic violence in Australia together with the Hansard record of proceedings and documents presented to the committee.

Ordered that the report be printed.

I move:

That the Senate take note of the report.

This inquiry was referred to the committee on 26 June last year. The committee received 165 public submissions as well as confidential submissions and held seven public hearings to take evidence from witnesses.

In Australia, between 2008 and 2010 the statistics show that nearly one woman every week was killed by their current or former partner. In 2015, the statistics to date show that this number is increasing with two Australian women killed by domestic violence each week.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics, in its most recent Personal Safety Survey, found that almost one in five Australian women have experienced violence at the hands of a partner since the age of 15. Women from some communities experience higher rates of violence than the national average. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women face far greater risks of being affected by violence. Women with a disability and women from some culturally and linguistically diverse communities are also particularly vulnerable to domestic and family violence. It is these unacceptable rates of domestic and family violence which makes this one of the most important s al issues facing Australia today.

Domestic and family violence comes at a great personal cost to victims and their families. The committee heard time and time again over the course of this inquiry that domestic and family violence has severe and persistent effects on the physical and mental health of victims in the short term as well as their long-term wellbeing and the health of their families.

A study by VicHealth found that domestic and family violence is responsible for more preventable ill health in Victorian women under the age of 45 than any other of the well-known risk factors, including high blood pressure, obesity and smoking.

Domestic and family violence impacts on children—nationally, one in four children are exposed to family violence. Victoria Police data shows that, in a third of family incidents reported to police, children have been present. But children do not need to be physically present to suffer the negative consequences of violence—living in an environment where violence is the norm is extremely damaging. Victims of domestic and family violence also suffer financially, particularly in terms of maintaining employment and having access to suitable accommodation.

The number and severity of incidents of domestic and family violence also have broader economic costs for the community. A KPMG study commissioned by the Commonwealth found in 2009 that the annual cost of domestic violence is around $13.6 billion every year, and that this will rise to $15.6 billion by 2022, if steps are not taken.

It is clear that the Commonwealth government should do all it can to address the terrible effects of domestic and family violence. However, this report recognises that there is no single solution that will stop domestic and family violence overnight. Rather, it is a complex problem that requires a long-term, strategic approach by all levels of government and the Australian community more generally.

The government's strategic policy in this areas is the National Plan to Reduce Violence Against Women and their Children. While many witnesses and submitters spoke favourably about the national plan, they considered it could be improved.

The committee agrees that the national and long-term approach adopted by this plan has great potential to reduce domestic and family violence. It also offers an ideal opportunity for the Commonwealth to take a leadership role, especially considering how much of the front-line services are delivered by the states and territories. Because of this, the committee has recommended that the Commonwealth government strengthen its leadership role in tackling domestic and family violence. It should look to improve its consultation with the domestic violence sector, particularly to inform the development of future phases of the national plan.

The committee also recommends that the Commonwealth government table, through the Prime Minister, an annual report to parliament on what progress has been made in the effort to tackle domestic and family violence so that progress and next steps are made clear to the sector and the wider Australian community. This recommendation is also to ensure that efforts to address domestic violence remain on the national agenda for the long term.

A clear theme of evidence was that better data about domestic and family violence is needed. What is particularly concerning is that, as this committee heard repeatedly, domestic and family violence may be underreported and many more victims may not be coming forward to get the help they need.

Therefore the report recommends a number of improvements be made to the collection of data by the government, including looking to refine the Personal Safety Survey to understand the effects of domestic violence in particular communities. This report also sees an opportunity for the Commonwealth to facilitate data collection through the National Data Collection and Reporting Framework.

The committee also considers that Australia's National Research Organisation for Women's Safety, ANROWS, is central to using any data collected by Australian governments about domestic and family violence. It is important that ANROWS receives funding until at least 2022, to match the time frame of the national plan and to inform its ongoing development.

The committee also considered how the Commonwealth could work through COAG to coordinate and support a national approach to domestic violence. The committee believe that the Commonwealth should investigate ways to encourage appropriate leave being provided to victims of domestic violence so that they can start to get their lives back on track.

Investment in primary prevention initiatives is a key strategy over the long term to build awareness and to bring about attitudinal and behavioural change. General public awareness campaigns are important for primary prevention as are more targeted campaigns to address the needs of particular groups such as new migrants and Indigenous communities. The National Primary Prevention Framework by Our Watch will be a welcome step to improve national coordination and dissemination of information in this important area.

Working with young people is another important area to embed long-term societal change and to establish healthy relationships. The committee strongly supports the respectful relationships programs and the incorporation of respectful relationships into the national curriculum.

The committee welcomes the work being undertaken by COAG to make perpetrators more accountable and has recommended that this work consider the particular needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and LGBTI perpetrators as well as those in regional areas.

There is excellent work being done in jurisdictions and the committee has recommended the establishment of a subcommittee of first ministers to enable jurisdictions to share the results of trials and to coordinate best policy practice and service responses to domestic violence over time.

The legal system is another area that victims of domestic and family violence have to navigate and the committee heard it is not easy for them. The committee welcome the announcement that a national family bench book will be developed but believe that targeted training and evaluation of family consultants who write family reports would also help, as well as specific training for judicial officers.

Throughout the inquiry the availability of housing was raised as a critical issue affecting victims of domestic and family violence, whether they chose to leave the family home or remain at home. A recommendation in this area is for the Commonwealth government, through COAG, to facilitate the evaluation of existing legal measures and support programs that facilitate the removal of perpetrators from the family home.

Affordable housing can play a central role in helping victims of domestic violence to get their lives back on track over the longer term. The committee has recommended that the Commonwealth government take a leadership role in the provision of affordable housing solutions to meet the long-term needs of those made homeless by domestic violence.

The committee also acknowledges the need for victims to receive longer-term support—wraparound services including financial and trauma counselling, and specialised services to address the needs of particular communities. Given the long-term effort required to address domestic and family violence, the committee sees value in governments funding relevant services using a multiyear approach to reduce the level of uncertainty and to allow adequate future planning in the sector.

I wish to thank all the individuals and organisations that gave their time to make submissions and to speak to the committee at the public hearings. The stories and experiences that you have shared demonstrated to the committee the seriousness and magnitude of the challenge we face in reducing domestic and family violence in Australia. Through your involvement, we have become more familiar with the incredible work being done on the front line of the sector, as well as the skill, dedication and commitment of its workers.

I pay tribute to the Australian of the Year, Rosie Batty, who has been such a powerful and extraordinary advocate for victims of domestic violence and for the people working to assist them, and who generously assisted the committee with its work.

In closing, I would like to acknowledge and commend the work of my colleagues who participated in this inquiry. I would like to note especially the work done by my predecessor as chair, Senator the Hon Kate Lundy, who retired from the Senate in March this year.

I would also like to note the hard work done by all committee members over the course of this inquiry. I particularly express my appreciation to my colleagues for their efforts to reach agreement on the recommendations, and I acknowledge the broad support across the parliament to work together.

I hope that this report, when read in conjunction with other reports, provides some assistance in current policy discussions and debates over how best to respond to one of our country's greatest challenges. I commend the report to the Senate.