Garth Hamilton (Groom, Liberal National Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Energy Security and Affordability) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm going to use this opportunity to speak on the very difficult issue of domestic violence. In doing so, I will praise and acknowledge the work of the member for Lingiari. I've spoken to her in private, and also from dispatch boxes previously, acknowledging the hard work she does in talking about this issue—and also about empowering women, as she's done in her most recent speech.

I've spoken on the issue before, but it's something I want to get better at. The reality is that it's a really tough conversation not only for us to have; I am sure that every one of us who's been in this job for a while will have had someone come into the electoral office and begin this conversation. What they're telling you, in essence, is that the person they love has done something very, very bad, and that's a really difficult conversation. It's difficult for them to tell, and it's actually difficult to hear. I was speaking to the Minister for Social Services today about what help can be provided to electoral offices, because they have to deal with that too, and I think this is an important part. Sometimes people do come to us in their darkest hours.

I'll be honest, what's forced me into talking about this—I'll be part of an article in the media in over the weekend that is, in part, based around the impacts of domestic violence. I felt it was important to talk up about this. Certainly, as a local member, when I go to places like Protea Place, a women's crisis shelter run by the unstoppable Amanda Dalton—she's done a great job of talking to me about the issues we face in a regional community like Toowoomba. A lot of people out in the west of Queensland and northern New South Wales, when they go through breakdowns, sadly often involving domestic violence—what we're seeing is this heightened group of women aged 55-plus who have decided to leave, and where do they come to from those regional communities? They come to Toowoomba because they hope that there are services there to support them, and the sad truth is our services are, like in a lot of places, just desperate. We do not have enough, and that's the truth. I thank Amanda for her work.

I also will point out people like Tony Rehn from Toowoomba Together, who has really pushed the drive in Toowoomba to talk to men about domestic violence and what role men can play. I think, in the way that he does it, coming from a former policeman's view, there is the sufficient black and white when we're talking about where crimes have been committed and what lines have been crossed, but there's also a conversation to talk about men who are open to change. I think we need to have programs in place that deal with that. He addresses that very strongly. Between that strong law-and-order line and also working with people and being open and talking about it, I hope that there are things that we can do. I note the limitations of the federal government, and I know we have to work with the states and we have to work with our councils and our communities and those service providers as well. But I would really hope that that's something that can continue to have a bipartisan approach in this place. Whilst we might have different views as to the solutions and the priority of solutions that we would have, I have always believed that we have a bipartisan approach to dealing with this.

On my side, I'll acknowledge Peter Dutton's strong positions with regard to domestic violence and the discipline that he's certainly brought into our party in dealing with that issue as strongly as we can. I'll also acknowledge Julia Gillard's National Plan to Reduce Violence Against Women and Children in 2011. The effort to treat the issue seriously is from both sides. I would hope that is a continuing theme of my time in this place.

The hard part is—and this is where I hope to get better with it. The truth is so many people have a domestic violence story connected in their lives, and it's really difficult to talk about. I certainly have family history of it. I come from a regional community and town. Sadly, it's a fact of life. I have friends who have told stories about it. I have extended family members who have told me their stories. It is really difficult and confronting to do so. I remember my father telling me he was raised in a household that had domestic violence, and I always thought the best thing about my father was that he was somehow able to not continue that cycle on, and how he did that I have no idea. But that's a topic I want to talk about more—how we break that cycle. That was such an effort for him to say. I think on and hope that, in some way, I can take his example and bring it to this place and, in a cooperative, way work together to make this issue one that we can be proud of the efforts that we've done here.