Page 3793 - Week 11 - Tuesday, 24 September 2019
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reasonably believes that a sexual offence has been committed against a child must make a report to the police. This is a consequence of a recent amendment to the Crimes Act with section 66AA now outlining this offence and providing for a maximum penalty of imprisonment for two years. I and the Canberra Liberals supported this amendment and others that have been devised based on recommendations made by the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. We have supported these amendments because we are fully committed to the protection of children and young people in this territory.
Speaking personally, I believe my record on matters of child protection is abundantly clear. I raised concerns in this chamber that this government’s Family and Personal Violence Legislation Amendment Bill may not adequately protect children. I asked the minister to work with nationally recognised and accredited organisations to provide all first-time parents and other primary caregivers with information packets that address how to recognise and protect against child sexual abuse, something she has not implemented despite supposedly agreeing to it in principle.
On many occasions I have raised concerns about the safety and wellbeing of children and young people in youth detention and residential care homes. I have repeatedly called on this government to implement measures to strengthen the quality of decision-making in the care and protection system by allowing for external review of decisions affecting some of the territory’s most vulnerable kids. I raised this issue again just last Wednesday.
The importance of getting this area right is underscored by the fact that the single greatest cohort that contacted the royal commission to report having experienced sexual abuse were those who had been abused in some form of out of home care. With the legislation coming into effect three weeks ago it is important, as Mr Pettersson has noted, that all adult Canberrans understand their obligations to report if they reasonably believe that a child is experiencing sexual abuse.
The responsibility of the ACT government to make this understanding happen is enormous, as noted clearly in the analysis report prepared by Justice Julie Dodds-Streeton and Jack O’Connor released in January this year. First, though, it is important to point out that Canberrans overwhelmingly want to do the right thing when it comes to reporting abuse. The analysis report states that stakeholders, including ACT Policing and the Community Services Directorate, have indicated the ACT community’s general willingness to report and the high level of compliance with mandatory reporting obligations. This includes ACT Policing’s finding that religious institutions are now very proactive in reporting and responding to child sexual abuse.
I take this opportunity to sincerely congratulate and thank Canberrans for their eagerness to comply with child safety measures. No doubt they are also prepared to comply with the new requirements once they understand their obligations. This is a central point in Justice Dodds-Streeton and O’Connor’s analysis. As the report points out, the failure-to-report offence is the only scheme that potentially requires a person who may not be professionally or occupationally qualified or in a managerial position to report. Consequently, it becomes essential that such an obligation to report be clear and readily comprehensible. The wide range of persons subject to potential criminal
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