Karen Andrews (McPherson, Liberal Party, Minister for Home Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

Tomorrow is the 17th annual Day for Daniel, Australia's largest child safety education and awareness day. Many of us in this place will have had the opportunity to meet Bruce and Denise Morcombe over the years, and they would normally have been here today in the chamber. If we had had the opportunity to get them here—because of travel arrangements they have been unable to make it here today—I know they would have been in the gallery today, and they would also have taken the opportunity to speak to as many people here as they possibly could about the need for greater awareness of issues in relation to child safety and child sexual exploitation.

This year's theme for Day for Daniel is 'Wear Red, Educate and Donate'. I want everyone to take the opportunity to use this time, firstly, to remember Daniel Morcombe but also to have conversations with loved ones, with people we know, about their own personal safety and what they can do to protect themselves and their loved ones.

Bruce and Denise Morcombe's son Daniel went missing in 2003. It was later revealed that he'd been abducted and murdered by a notorious paedophile while waiting for a bus. Since 2004, Bruce and Denise have dedicated their lives to Daniel's legacy and have established the Daniel Morcombe Foundation in honour of Daniel and to make Australia a safer place for children. The Daniel Morcombe Foundation is committed to educating children on how to stay safe in both the physical and online environments and to supporting young victims of crime. In 2019, almost $2 million in the seized proceeds of crime was provided by the government to the foundation's Keeping Australia's Kids Safe Program. This program is a national campaign to increase awareness, confidence and the abilities of parents, carers and teachers to identify and respond to child sexual abuse.

Bruce and Denise were also strong advocates for the establishment of the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation, or the ACCCE, which was announced by the government in 2018. To this day, the Daniel Morcombe Foundation is still one of the leading non-government organisations working closely with the ACCCE to prevent child sexual exploitation. Statistics from the ACCCE are sobering and show we all have a role to play in stamping out this abhorrent crime. During the 12 months to 30 June this year, the ACCCE received more than 22,000 reports of child sexual exploitation. During that period, 235 offenders were charged with 2,722 child abuse related offences resulting in 232 children being removed from harm both domestically and internationally.

Raising awareness is key, but Australians need to be open to the discussion, even though they may find it uncomfortable. Day for Daniel is a significant national event that allows important conversations to be started. I encourage everyone to participate tomorrow in any way that they can by walking, by wearing a red ribbon or by donating to the foundation, because together we can ensure that our communities are safer places for children.

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