George Brandis (Queensland, Liberal Party, Attorney-General) Share this | Hansard source

Well they do, they will and they are for the reasons I have already explained. Let me elaborate a little, because I am sure it will be of interest to you, Senator, what the health justice partnerships do. This is a new idea that is being pioneered in my department, recognising the fact that the first responders to domestic violence are more commonly doctors and clinicians than they are lawyers or social workers.

So what we are providing—and we are trialling this at four locations at the moment: in Elizabeth, inner Melbourne, Alice Springs and Greater Brisbane—is a service which provides an initial point of contact with health professionals who will communicate with legal professionals and social workers to provide a whole suite of necessary professional services where a person presents at a hospital or a GP surgery and a women is identified as being in need of assistance across the whole suite of professional services. Those are the new initiatives we are taking to address the very problem you have identified. Senator. (Time expired)