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

Senator Hinch, the functions of child protection are administered primarily by state governments through both various departments of state departments or territory departments—children services or family services, however so called, in the various states and territories—and also, where crime is involved, of course by the state and territory police. What matters from the Commonwealth government's point of view—the central government's point of view—is that we facilitate the maximum degree of coordination and exchange of information between those departments and agencies as we do on a wide variety of fronts. The state governments are closer to the problem. This is, in our view, a problem best dealt with at the state level with support from Canberra rather than being a problem best dealt with centrally from Canberra.

Senator Hinch, in the moments left to me—(Time expired)