Zali Steggall (Warringah, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

I seconded the motion of the member for Wentworth, and I thank her for her advocacy, but really I wish we did not need to put such a motion forward, because better progress—more progress—from the government is desperately needed on this issue.

In Warringah, more than 450 domestic and family violence assaults were reported in the last year. When we talk to our local police, they will say that domestic and family violence is the No. 1 issue for which they are called out. Nationally, the picture is simply devastating. Whilst we have the Status of women report card identifying 37 women killed in 2024, unfortunately other metrics will often say that the number is even greater. Australian Femicide Watch puts the number as high as 103 women and 16 children killed. Even the fact that we have such a disparity of numbers is frightening, and it highlights the level of crisis this is.

We know that in 2025 there have been, on some counts, 48 women killed already. On average, one woman every nine days is killed by a current or former partner. If that is not a national crisis, I don't know what qualifies as one. It is an absolute tragedy, and more needs to be done. It's not good enough to just say, 'We are the government that has put a record amount of money out there, and we have a national plan over this decade to eradicate domestic and family violence.' Unfortunately, it is not working. It's not moving the dial yet.

In May last year, I brought a motion to this House calling for stronger action. Since then, sure, the government has announced $4.7 billion over five years for frontline services in partnership with the states. These are welcome commitments, but the reality is that they are not shifting the dial. Ninety-four per cent of New South Wales services report increased demand. There is a two-month average wait for critical support for women and children needing to access those critical services, and, for a woman in danger, a two-month wait is far too long.

In Warringah—and this problem is a scourge everywhere—we're fortunate to have incredible local services: Northern Beaches Women's Shelter, Mary's House, Women & Children First and the Women's Resilience Centre. All are manned by so many incredible volunteers doing amazing work. They provide crisis accommodation and wraparound support. But they are chronically underfunded and overstretched. Long waitlists mean women and children are left at risk at the most dangerous moment: when they are trying to leave.

We are one year on from the rapid review. Cast your mind back to May last year. Obviously, the numbers of women killed were reaching crisis point. There was a lot of pressure. The government announced a rapid review to try and move the dial. They brought together experts. They called it a national emergency, and there were key recommendations that came out of that rapid review report. Unfortunately, some key recommendations remain unaddressed. The government is still sitting on its hands because it doesn't want to tackle these hard decisions.

It means tighter restrictions on alcohol sales, delivery times and advertising. It does mean banning gambling advertising. We have been trying to push the government to move on this, and it is linked so many issues, but it is also linked to domestic and family violence. We know the combination of alcohol and gambling fuels domestic violence incidents. The evidence is clear. There's no point in saying you're doing the right thing if you don't tackle these two massive areas. We know alcohol was involved in 20 per cent of domestic homicides. During major sporting events like State of Origin, family violence reports spike by up to 40 per cent. In New South Wales, the extension of takeaway alcohol sales by one hour led to 1,100 additional domestic violence assaults in the following 38 months. The data is there. The government just needs to act.

The member for Wentworth has raised the question of eligibility for the family violence crisis payment. It is far too narrow. The complications of being able to apply for it are difficult, and this needs to be changed. We also have system weaponisation, where too often the system makes it even harder for women trying to get support. We see this through child support payments, where we have that link between the income test and recovery attempts. There are so many areas in which systems abuse is facilitated for perpetrators, so we really have to rethink that model urgently. We are now some time on. I urge the government to implement all the recommendations of the review.

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