Larissa Waters (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate—

(a) notes that:

(i) since the last Senate sitting period, there have been 3 women killed by violence in Australia, bringing the total of women killed by violence to 63 in 2018, as reported by Counting Dead Women Australia from Destroy The Joint,

(ii) on average, one woman a week is murdered by her current or former partner,

(iii) 1 in 3 Australian women have experienced physical violence since the age of 15,

(iv) 1 in 5 Australian women has experienced sexual violence,

(v) 1 in 6 Australian women has experienced physical or sexual violence by a current or former partner,

(vi) 1 in 4 Australian women has experienced emotional abuse by a current or former partner,

(vii) Australian women are nearly three times more likely than men to experience violence from an intimate partner,

(viii) there is growing evidence that women with disabilities are more likely to experience violence,

(ix) Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women report experiencing violence in the previous 12 months at 3.1 times the rate of non-Indigenous women, and

(x) in 2014-15, Indigenous women were 32 times as likely to be hospitalised due to family violence as non-Indigenous women; and

(b) calls on the Federal Government to:

(i) recognise domestic violence against women as a national security crisis,

(ii) adequately fund frontline domestic violence and crisis housing services to ensure that all women seeking safety can access these services when and where they need them,

(iii) legislate for 10 days paid domestic violence leave so that women do not have to choose between paying the bills and seeking safety, and

(iv) implement all 25 recommendations of the report of the Finance and Public Administration References Committee into domestic violence in Australia, tabled on 20 August 2015.

Anne Ruston (SA, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for International Development and the Pacific) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to make a short statement.

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Leave is granted for one minute.

Anne Ruston (SA, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for International Development and the Pacific) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Liberal-National government has zero tolerance for violence against women and works with all jurisdictions to keep women and children safe. The government has invested over $300 million to improve women's safety since 2015, focusing on practical measures that reduce the incidence of violence and supporting victims and their children. The government is developing the fourth action plan of the National Plan to Reduce Violence Against Women and their Children. Legislation is currently before the parliament to provide a minimum standard of five days of unpaid domestic violence leave, as recommended by the Fair Work Commission.

Peter Georgiou (WA, Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to make a short statement.

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Leave is granted for one minute.

Peter Georgiou (WA, Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There is no doubt that many people, not only women but men as well, are in crisis when it comes to domestic violence. My motion on 19 September called on the federal government to fill the data-sharing gaps as outlined in the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare report published earlier this year. Right now my home state of Western Australia is unfortunately the domestic violence capital of Australia, and we know that the effect and impact domestic violence has on children is devastating. My motion earlier this year urged the federal government to provide more relief housing and crisis accommodation for all victims of domestic violence. With the festive season just around the corner, when domestic violence tends to spike, it is vital that all levels of government do their bit to provide a safe haven for Australians in need.

Question agreed to.