Sharon Claydon (Newcastle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, this is the first opportunity I have had to say congratulations to you on your appointment to the Speaker's role.

In following on from the remarks made by the Chair of the Standing Committee on Social Policy and Legal Affairs, as deputy chair of the committee, I would really like to put on record my thanks to the chair and indeed all committee members for their work throughout the child support program inquiry. I again especially want to acknowledge the support of the committee secretariat, who I note are present in the chamber today.

This was an inquiry that prioritized community engagement, which necessarily meant trialling a number of new initiatives like questionnaires and community statement sessions and a series of ongoing reporting-back mechanisms for the community. This inclusive approach was vital to the work of the committee, but I absolutely acknowledge the additional workload that it caused for the secretariat and I thank them for their willingness to embrace the community engagement strategy for this inquiry into the child support program.

I would also like to acknowledge and thank, as the chair noted, some 12,000 individuals and groups around Australia who contributed to this inquiry. In particular, I acknowledge the longstanding work of many advocacy groups, representing large numbers of proponents, and individuals who shared their personal stories and lived experience throughout the inquiry, providing the critical context necessary for this report.

As detailed by the chair, the child support program is one of Australia's largest and most complex administrative schemes, and throughout this inquiry the committee has identified a number of ways in which the program could be improved in both design and administration. While potential improvements have been found, it is important to put on record that the Child Support Scheme is largely operating as intended, with 93 per cent of all child support being transferred, as it should be, over the life of the scheme. So this is not a system that is broken, but it is in need of improvement, particularly for those separating parents who are unable to come to amicable resolutions about new family arrangements and are perhaps entrenched in a high degree of conflict.

With this in mind, the committee made some 25 recommendations for the government's consideration, a number of which I would like to bring to the attention of the House today. Importantly, the committee recommends that the Australian government recognise the importance of specialist response and support to separated families where family violence has been present, and recommends the establishment of a dedicated family violence response unit within the Department of Human Services. The unit would be responsible for ensuring that the safety and wellbeing of the child is always paramount and it would be tasked with providing a number of important functions, including    being a one-stop point of contact for all inquiries and support services; providing a means of intermediary communication between parties; and coordinating access to services across a range of government departments. This coordination would put a stop to victims of family violence having to relive their trauma each and every time they interact with different officers and departments. The need for a dedicated family violence response unit was highlighted by a number advocacy groups throughout this inquiry, and I thank the chair and all committee members for including this recommendation in the report. I strongly urge the minister and government to accept and implement this recommendation a matter of urgency.

I would also like to highlight recommendations 6 and 7, which recommend greater cooperation between the Australian Taxation Office and the Department of Human Services to address the issue of nonlodgement of tax returns and to ensure that the penalties applicable to the nonlodgement or late lodgement of tax returns are actually enforced for all clients of the child support program.

The current disparity between the number of child support program clients who fail to lodge tax returns and the number of such clients pursued by the ATO is alarming. The committee heard evidence throughout the inquiry that the continuous nonlodgement of tax returns was a tactic used by some parents to artificially lower their child support liability. To ensure the integrity of the program and correct assessment and payments, steps must be undertaken to eliminate this practice. Greater cooperation between the tax office and the department is essential to ensure that the financial needs of children are being adequately addressed.

The committee also recommends that the Australian government respond to the Australian Law Reform Commission Report 117, entitled Family violence and Commonwealth laws—improving legal frameworksas a matter of priority. The committee very much looks forward to seeing the next stage of the Department of Human Services' family violence strategy, and reiterates that the strategy should be developed in compliance with the National Plan to Reduce Violence against Women and their Children 2010-2022 and the Second Action Plan 2013-2016—particularly around the use of integrated systems.

In addition, the committee has recommended that the government give serious consideration to conducting a trial of a limited child support guarantee. The committee believes that a limited targeted guarantee system could help protect vulnerable families in the child support program, overcoming some of the more shocking examples of financial hardship arising from unpaid child support, while also providing a much needed buffer between parents at a time of potential conflict. Most importantly, a guarantee aims to ensure that children are not negatively impacted if the payee parent does not pay on time or, indeed, fails to pay at all. Calls for a limited guarantee were consistently raised and supported by a number of groups and individuals giving evidence at our inquiry. I am very pleased to see that recommendation in this report.

In closing, I note the committee's universal agreement that it is, indeed, the best interest of the child that is paramount in any child support program. Distinguishing the rights of the child, and their best interest, is an essential but sometimes overlooked aspect following family separation. I urge the government to give this report and the recommendations the serious consideration that they deserve, remembering that the best interests of the child must be central to any reforms forthcoming.

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