Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I commend the member for Throsby for his contribution. I also speak in favour of the Royal Commissions Amendment Bill 2013. As touched on by previous speakers, from both sides of the House, this is a logical amendment to an important piece of legislation supported by both sides of the chamber. Not always in this chamber is there bipartisan support but on this we speak with one voice, as a responsible parliament.

In January this year our Prime Minister recommended to the Governor-General that letters patent be issued appointing six commissioners to work together as the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. It is to be chaired by Justice Peter McClellan. He will be ably assisted by Mr Andrew Murray, Mr Robert Fitzgerald, Justice Jennifer Coate, Professor Helen Milroy and someone I am particularly proud of mentioning—a Queenslander—Mr Bob Atkinson, whom I have had much to do with over the years in his capacity as commissioner for police. He is a longstanding, very well-respected police officer who served the Queensland community with great dignity and effectiveness in his capacity as a detective, where he dealt with some of the most horrific criminal cases in Queensland, and now he will serve all of Australia in this royal commission.

The aim of this bill is to amend the Royal Commissions Act 1902 to assist the work of the royal commission. The amendments will allow one or more of the six royal commissioners to conduct hearings, which means—because of the geography of Australia—we will not need to have people travelling all the time to Sydney. It is my understanding that the royal commission will be based here. It is obviously an important part of the nation, but there are people scattered all around Australia who will give evidence in front of one or two commissioners, as appropriate.

The Royal Commissions Act currently only permits hearings to be conducted by all members of a multimember commission or by a quorum. So this current model is not sufficient in addressing the challenges at hand and changes need to be implemented. These amendments will assist the commission to distribute its hearing work efficiently, where this is appropriate. As I said, coming from one of the most decentralised states—Queensland—I know that it will be appropriate for the commissioners to travel throughout Australia.

The other purpose of the bill is to allow the commissioners to receive information from those affected by child abuse at less formal, private sessions, therefore providing a more comfortable environment for the victims of child abuse. Anyone who has worked in this area—whether dealing with the evidence given by children or evidence given by adults who were abused as children—knows that often a less formal or adversarial judicial environment can be more conducive to the facts coming out.

All governments must take very seriously the responsibility to protect children from child abuse and to respond to family violence. I know I have said previously that I see all of our children as distilled hope. The nation's potential is represented in our children. The Gillard Labor government has a proud track record of helping the vulnerable and working to deliver reforms that will help future generations. As I said in my introductory remarks, at this time in the 43rd parliament there is strong bipartisan support for the proposed endeavours in this piece of legislation.

This government has always taken on the big challenges in our society—for example, putting a price on carbon. The Clean Energy Future plan is all about preserving the planet and this nation for our children, for our grandchildren and for our great-grandchildren. I know that this tough political decision engenders all sorts of responses from members of the public, be they outbursts in parliament or standing up at demonstrations and saying horrible things about members of parliament. However, the reason the Gillard Labor government took that decision is that it is the right thing to do for our children and for our grandchildren. Likewise the National Disability Insurance Scheme is a tough piece of legislation but it is the right thing for the future.

The decision I am most proud of is obviously the Gonski education reforms. Deputy Speaker Grierson, I know your background is in education and you know the joy that comes from seeing people's circumstances change due to education. It is in the DNA of the Labor Party obviously to invest in education, to make sure that education gives people an opportunity. These tough reforms are not a backward step. These decisions will shape this country and the globe for years to come.

My wife has worked in child protection over 23 years—hopefully she is not listening to this. She started on 3 January 1990 as a very young child protection worker. I have known her for 21 years. In that time she has dealt with some horrific cases, some horrible, horrible cases. Obviously no-one phones the Child Protection Service to say, 'Everything's going well here.' The contact is only ever about families in crisis. My wife tells people of the lifelong scars suffered by those who experience physical and emotional abuse in the family home. I have heard a lot in this job but nothing like the stories she has heard and been involved in. Sadly she is still surprised by what people will do and the depths that people will plumb.

Being a child protection worker is obviously very difficult work, being involved with families and passions, paedophiles and all sorts of abuse. Sadly, two of her colleagues were in a car accident on the weekend when going off to work. The two women, who worked for the Department of Communities, Child Safety and Disability Services, were killed when their four-wheel drive collided with a minibus at Barratta Creek near Townsville. I was speaking about this to the member for Herbert, Ewen Jones. I am going to do what I can and join with him, in another bipartisan effort, to have a raffle or something to raise funds in Townsville. I will make a donation and Ewen Jones will make a donation. He was an auctioneer in another life, so he is a very good fundraiser to support the families of these two women who, in going about their difficult work, sadly passed away.

Obviously, child abuse cannot be tolerated under any circumstances. Whether it is from violence in the family or from violence in an institution, in either case, it is not acceptable. All children deserve a safe and happy childhood. By establishing a royal commission into institutional child abuse we can bring attention to the injustices which have occurred in places where the most vulnerable in our society should have been cared for and protected. Child sexual abuse and other related unlawful or improper treatment of children has a long-term cost to individuals and, as we have sadly seen, also to the economy and to society as a whole. I want all of our children to grow up in a safe environment and to put trust in the institutions that step in when parents fail, so that a safe atmosphere is provided.

The amendments in the Royal Commissions Amendment Bill will bring occurrences of institutional child abuse out into the open, occurrences which over time have been ignored and rejected. For many people, telling their stories of child sexual abuse will be very traumatic. These private sessions will mean that people affected by this crime can voluntarily participate in the royal commission in a less formal setting so that their voices can be heard. So often when meeting people who have suffered abuse we see that it is important they be given a voice because they were silenced as a child. We want the victims of these horrid circumstances to be able to come forth and tell their story without fear of rejection or judgment, and these amendments facilitate that. Obviously, we cannot know at this time how many people will wish to participate in the royal commission; although, since January, we have seen significant media interest, and people have contacted my office to ask about the process. That gives an indication as to how many people in our community have been affected, sadly, by child abuse.

We know it will be difficult, but this government is prepared to step up to the challenge and do everything that we can against these acts of violence and, more importantly, to prevent any abuse happening in the future. The government cannot undo the pain and suffering that has occurred in the past; but we can listen, we can bear witness and we, as a nation, can respond.

When the royal commission has completed its work, we can act to prevent these crimes and injustices from happening again. Like most crimes, eternal vigilance is the best defence, and the royal commission is a part of that process. The royal commission is as much about assisting victims of past abuse to be heard as it is about investigating systemic failures that can be prevented in the future. We cannot remain silent on these shocking crimes of sexual child abuse. I welcome the bill. I hope it will have a positive impact on the health and wellbeing of those who have suffered the traumatic experience of child abuse in institutional circumstances. I commend the bill to the house.

See this speech in context