Anne Urquhart (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

At the request of Senator Dodson, I move:

That the Senate—

(a) notes the Government has failed to agree to a significant number of recommendations of the second year review of the National Redress Scheme, including not committing to:

(i) reviewing the current restriction on survivors making a single application (recommendation 3.1),

(ii) allowing more survivors access to redress (recommendation 3.2),

(iii) making 'reasonable likelihood' the required standard of proof (recommendation 3.4),

(iv) fixing the broken matrix and properly recognising the impact of abuse (recommendation 3.11),

(v) guarantee that there won't be additional secret criteria that make it harder for people to access redress (recommendation 3.12),

(vi) making the guidelines used to assess redress application public (recommendation 3.13),

(vii) a minimum redress payment of $10,000 (recommendation 4.3),

(viii) stopping the indexation of prior payments (recommendation 4.5),

(ix) permitting additional information to be provided by survivors as part of an internal review (recommendation 5.1), and

(x) increasing the staff cap so that redress applications can be properly assessed and handled (recommendation 6.7); and

(b) calls on the Federal Government to:

(i) implement all the recommendations of the second year review of the National Redress Scheme, and

(ii) increase the maximum redress payment to $200,000 as recommended by the Royal Commission.

Anne Ruston (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Families and Social Services) 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, Minister for Families and Social Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Morrison government has immediately supported 25 of the 38 recommendations of the second year review and commends the work of the independent reviewer. Notably, the review did not recommend an increase to the maximum redress payment. To implement the immediate recommendations, we have committed $80 million to improve the survivor experience and the redress scheme process, including advance payments of $10,000 to specific cohorts. Any major design changes of the scheme's legislation in response to the review would require the approval of the scheme's governance arrangements with state and territory redress ministers. This includes the remaining 13 recommendations, which are noted or supported in principle due to this requirement. I am working actively with the states and territories to seek their support to amend the legislation which underpins the scheme.

Question agreed to.