Tanya Plibersek (Sydney, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Education) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister: Over a year ago, the Sex Discrimination Commissioner, Kate Jenkins, delivered her Respect@Work report to the government. When will the government formally respond to all 55 recommendations?

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Together with the many other responses the government has been putting in place on these matters—and I particularly refer to the implementation of the fourth action plan, which, I can report, is on track with 85 per cent of measures meeting projected time lines and dealing with the many issues.

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting—

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I appreciate that I'm referring to a different program—

Opposition members interjecting—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Members on my left!

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

If members opposite are not interested in programs which are to implement primary prevention to stop violence before it starts, to support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women and their children, to respect, listen to and respond to the diverse lived experience and knowledge of women and their children—this is the fourth national action plan. In the process of implementing the fourth national action plan, we're also moving, through the Assistant Minister to the Attorney-General—she will be concluding her recommendations to the government on the response to that report and we hope to be able to do that in the not-too-distant future. So that is what the assistant minister is doing right now as we speak. There has already been a response in the budget of $2 million in measures for supporting the response to the Respect@Work report.

But what I am pleased to say is that the fourth national action plan for protecting women against violence is on track. They're important projects, and work is already underway on the fifth national action plan. A billion dollars has been invested by the government in implementing these measures that are designed to support women and protect them against violence, wherever that may occur.

Ms Plibersek interjecting—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Sydney will cease interjecting.

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

A billion dollars is what we have spent, and these programs—

Opposition members interjecting—

I note the interjections from those opposite. The fourth national action plan is a bipartisan initiative. It was supported by both sides of this House. That has been a key factor in its success since the first national action plan was put in place by Prime Minister Gillard, supported by the coalition in opposition at that time. Since coming to government, we have invested a further billion dollars in the action plans that have followed. We are now working together, I hope, to put in place the fifth national action plan, and that's a national action plan which is done together with the states and territories, who are keen deliverers—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I would just say to the Prime Minister—

Honourable members interjecting—

Members can cease interjecting. He has been able to give some context, but it was a specific question about a response—very specific—and he will need to come to that in his answer.

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr Speaker. I already came to it when I set out that the Assistant Minister to the Attorney-General is preparing that response, and it will be released shortly. I addressed that in my earlier remarks and I framed my response in the context of the more than a billion dollars that the government has invested in preventing violence against women, which we will continue to pursue in a bipartisan way. We will continue to pursue those measures in a bipartisan way, and I would encourage the Leader of the Opposition to bring the opposition to a bipartisan approach to this very serious issue. (Time expired)