Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .

Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 6 Hansard (17 June) . . Page.. 1690 ..

MR WOOD (continuing):

The two reports from the Community Law Reform Committee point to a great deal of confusion, lack of coordination, difficulties of accountability and sometimes overall lack of good response to domestic violence that exists in this community despite all the best intentions. Hence the recommendation of the committee for the council that is to be established by this Bill. That council is welcomed. The committee also recommended a coordinator to carry out specific works to ensure the implementation of policy, to ensure among other things the quality of programs, and to make certain of the multisystems approach that is so important in the domestic violence area.

I should add that when I talk about a domestic violence coordinator it is more a role; it is not necessarily one person. It is expected that there will be more than one person to carry out that work. This is where the disappointment of many lies - in the failure to understand the importance of this position. The proposals in the Minister's speech to this Assembly and other comments greatly diminish the quality of this legislation. The Government has taken an existing position, the Victims of Crime Coordinator, and has given us to understand that that person will be the coordinator in respect of domestic violence.

In that way the Government seeks to make its response to the important recommendation of the Community Law Reform Committee, but it is not doing the job. It is not the way that it was intended that it should happen. In fact, I think we are acting against some of the thrust of those reports and against the intended thrust of this Bill. I do not believe it is helping the VOCAL organisation either, because the person who is employed in that area is going to have to be taken away and do work in another area. In fact, the Minister has got two positions for the price of one. I think it is a money issue, and I think that is unfortunate. The key position is being scuttled, and much of the good work is not being carried through to full effect.

The Minister said at the Estimates Committee hearing that he will establish the council and then listen to what the council says. That is good. I cannot argue with that. But the council he is establishing is the result of very specific recommendations in a report. The domestic violence coordinator is a result of very specific recommendations in that same report. I would have thought that, if he is going to establish the council, it is a necessary corollary that he establish this position that I have been talking about. That has not happened.

Another provision that I have been talking about is the provision to make the coordinator for VOCAL, the person who is going to do this work or some part of it, the chair of the Domestic Violence Prevention Council. I find that strange. There will be a very strong connection, of course, between the council, which is to do the overall monitoring and coordination, and the domestic violence coordinator, who will be the one or two or three people in that area who will be doing the groundwork. It seems to me to be strange that, while we would want that as a statutory position, that person should chair the council for which they would be working. That does not seem to me to be the usual way that things would be done.

Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .