Page 617 - Week 03 - Tuesday, 30 March 2021
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Turning to the timing of the release of the review report, I would like to make two points. Firstly, the government is committed to acting on the report openly and honestly. Ms Lee is well aware that good reforms sometimes take time, and to suggest that the government is concealing anything is disingenuous. Secondly, the government has no interest in avoiding criticism of the new act. The whole point of the review was to identify gaps and opportunities for improvement.
As a time line, government directorates did receive a version of the report in March 2020. Following consideration of that version, and the time taken by the report writers to consider and reflect feedback from stakeholders, together with delays due to COVID, the final report was provided to government on 14 December 2020 and it was published online on 23 February 2021. So the final report was received in December.
It is not uncommon for draft reports to be received by government agencies and for clarifications to be sought or for some areas to be contested. That is standard procedure. The Auditor-General does it. With just about any government agency that I can think of, that is the approach that is taken.
Of course, sooner is better, but getting it right is the most important thing, in my view. The importance of getting these sensitive issues right is underscored by the media releases that have been issued subsequent to the release of the report from the Magistrates Court and the Australian Federal Police, providing their perspectives on some commentary in the report. We must progress these reforms by taking a considered approach when applying lived experience to the administration of the systems in place. As the report was commissioned by government with the aim of identifying shortcomings, while publication took some time, this did not operate as a bar to us progressing much-needed work.
For example, a pilot program is being run by the Office of the Coordinator-General for Family Safety and the Victims of Crime Commissioner to test a working model for coordination and information sharing around domestic and family violence. The pilot is focused on the assessment of risk, using shared information to create a full picture of that risk. The courts have reviewed relevant forms and improved the information available on their website, both for applicants seeking family violence orders and respondents. The new Charter of Rights for Victims of Crime in the Victims Rights Legislation Amendment Act 2020 requires justice agencies to provide victims with certain updates about their case and information to support their participation in the justice process, including about services they can access through the Victims of Crime Commissioner.
The continual need to reform family violence laws and responses is not unique to this jurisdiction. The government is closely watching the work taking place in other states and territories, including the inquiry by the New South Wales parliament into coercive control in domestic relationships.
The review makes a range of recommendations traversing further consultation and research, improved processes, and proposals for legislative change. Many of the
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