Sue Lines (WA, Deputy-President) | Link to this | Hansard source

I inform the Senate that, at 8.30 am today, six proposals were received in accordance with standing order 75. The question of which proposal would be submitted to the Senate was determined by lot. As a result, I inform the Senate that the following letter has been received from Senator Roberts:

That, in the opinion of the Senate, the following is a matter of urgency

'The urgent need for a review of the child support system in family law and its administration by the Department of Children Services'

Is the proposal supported?

More than the number of senators required by the standing orders having risen in their places—

Malcolm Roberts (Queensland, Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party) | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to move an amendment to the urgency motion standing in my name by omitting 'Department of Children's Services' and substituting it with 'Department of Human Services'.

Leave granted.

I move the amended motion:

That, in the opinion of the Senate, the following is a matter of urgency

'The urgent need for a review of the child support system in family law and its administration by the Department of Human Services'

Cory Bernardi (SA, Australian Conservatives) | Link to this | Hansard source

I understand that informal arrangements have been made to allocate specific times to each of the speakers in today's debate. With the concurrence of the Senate, I shall ask the clerks to set the clock accordingly.

Malcolm Roberts (Queensland, Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party) | Link to this | Hansard source

As a servant to the people of Queensland and Australia, I know that some constituents spend many, many years and many tens of thousands of dollars—well over $100,000—seeking custody through parenting orders from the Family Court. Yet, when they leave the court, the other party breaches those orders and withholds access to those precious children. That's shared care through shared costs for care, yet one party is forcing the other party to pay huge legal fees and child support costs while denying access. Worse, if the court orders fifty-fifty custody but one parent withholds access, that party can truthfully say they have 100 per cent custody, despite breaching court orders, and the child support system will force the other parent to pay more accordingly.

The child support system, as it stands, rewards parents financially for breaking court orders. Even worse, the child support system can deem a parent to pay more than their actual income because of the 'capacity to earn' clause. For example, if a parent on a fly-in fly-out contract with a mining site is earning $150,000 or more and that contract ends and he finds another job at a lower pay, he is deemed to be capable of earning $150,000, and child support payments are levied at a higher rate. That parent loses his access to his kids, loses huge amounts of money and, when forced to sell assets to pay for child support, spirals downward. That parent's mental health deteriorates. He finds it difficult to keep his job and, above all, he can't see his children because the other parent is breaching court orders with impunity. Restricting a parent's access to their children and forcing them to pay more than they can is abusive. It is a form of emotional violence that can lead to suicide, and it is the children who suffer more. For the sake of the parents and especially the children, we must fix this.

I just want to point out that it is not this alone that is hurting parents and especially children. It is the interaction and the confusion that requires children sometimes to become a weapon and, in so doing, a casualty. It is the children who get hurt.

In the family law system, there is a lack of consequences for people who tell lies and make false claims. They don't have to fess up. There's the interaction of state and federal laws; this is very confusing for people to wind themselves through. There is custody of the child and access to the child, of course. There are domestic violence claims which sometimes are false. There is the property settlement issue. There is abuse of the law. There is legal game playing. Then there is money-grabbing by lawyers and money-grabbing by some parents. And there is an emotional issue for everyone. There are long-term consequences and there are many more people affected than just the two parents and the children; there are grandparents and communities. So this is not a simple issue. We have raised it, and we thank the Senate for its support to speak about it today. It is an issue that must be tackled, starting with child custody, especially in the Family Court.

I want to give people an idea of just how deeply damaging this can be. I had a tour recently of the Australian Brotherhood of Fathers facilities, an entirely voluntary operation in Southport, Queensland, south of Brisbane. Leith Erikson himself, the founder, gave me the tour and gave a number of our staff a tour. Leith told us about the start of the Australian Brotherhood of Fathers, or its predecessor. He used to turn up at courts to help men and women, mothers and fathers, through the court procedure. He realised there was a big gap in the services provided to people and then started helping people in various aspects. He now has a building that has a call centre manned entirely by volunteers. What's more, it is manned by people who have been through the process, so they understand. These are not consultants, these are not telemarketers and these are not call centre people; these are people who have been through the mill of the destructive family law court system and child custody services system. Leith has people there manning the phones for people to call in and get advice on how to approach situations.

The Australian Brotherhood of Fathers—which also helps mothers; it's gender neutral—also has a facility for supervised child contact. That means that people who have to have supervised contact can get access to these very safe facilities at a much lower cost than is standard. That's yet another cost that some parents have to fork out: paying for someone to watch them having an interaction with their own kids. There are facilities for older people. There are counsellors who are given space in that centre for counselling. There are other facilities there that complete the gamut. There are legal services there that enable people to access lawyers at a fair rate, knowing that those lawyers are going to be on their side and not just in it for the money.

This is a very, very complex thing. Lives have been ruined by this. I'm so pleased to see that the Senate can see this and support this matter of urgency today. Acting Deputy President, I have no more to say other than thank you. Our thoughts go to all mothers, fathers and grandparents who are going through this very difficult time.

Claire Chandler (Tasmania, Liberal Party) | Link to this | Hansard source

The Morrison government is committed to keeping all Australians safe and secure. That is why the government has taken action to improve Australia's family law system to protect Australians from family and domestic violence and to significantly increase mental health funding to support our families.

The Morrison government recognises that family and relationship breakdowns can be amongst the most stressful and difficult circumstances in people's lives, for both adults and children. This government is committed to ongoing improvements to the family law system to ensure that the system helps families separate in a safe, supportive and timely way. The Morrison government has already committed to delivering structural reform of the federal family law courts to help end the unnecessary costs and delays for thousands of Australian families that arise from a split federal Family Court system. This will allow families to have their matters dealt with as efficiently as possible and under a single set of rules and procedures. These reforms will significantly improve the family law system by reducing the backlog of matters before the family law courts and driving timely, less expensive and more consistent resolution of disputes for Australian families. It is estimated that these structural reforms have the potential in time to allow thousands of additional cases to be resolved each and every year. It will create, in effect, a single point of entry into the family law jurisdiction of the Federal Court system and ensure a consistent pathway for Australian families in having their family law disputes dealt with in the federal courts.

The Morrison coalition government also commissioned the first comprehensive review of the family law system in 40 years. That review, the results of which were released in April this year, contains 60 recommendations to improve our family law system. The government is carefully considering the Australian Law Reform Commission's wide-ranging review of the family law system. We are intent on ensuring the system works for Australian families, keeps them safe and, as I've said, allows for efficient and timely separations of families.

Our commitment to improvements to the family law system is clear from the range of significant measures the government have already taken to assist and protect separating families. That includes the establishment and now extension of specialist domestic violence units and health justice partnerships, which provide legal and social support assistance to vulnerable women experiencing family violence. We have established and are extending the Family Advocacy and Support Service, which provides duty lawyers at family law courts to provide services to families affected by family violence. In the 2019-20 budget, we committed an additional $7.8 million over three years for dedicated men's support workers to be engaged in all FASS locations. The dedicated men's support workers will provide access to support services for both alleged perpetrators and male victims of family violence—and I think it's great to see us taking a gender neutral approach to this issue.

We've also committed $50 million over four years for family law property mediation as part of the Women's Economic Security Package, a package introduced by this government that I am firmly supportive of. There's $11 million to improve information sharing between the family law, family violence and child protection services, including the co-location of state and territory family safety officials in family law courts and prohibiting perpetrators of family violence from cross-examining their victims in family law proceedings. We're providing $7 million to legal aid commissions to represent affected parties as well as more than $10 million over four years for the family law courts to employ up to 17 additional qualified social workers and psychologists as family consultants.

These recent measures are on top of the $160 million per year for family law services to support people from family law disputes outside of court. These services include counselling and education programs, and it's estimated that more than 70,000 men and 86,000 women accessed these services last year. As well as this, the government provides legal assistance funding, which will increase to around $370 million per year from 2021, as part of the national Single Mechanism announced by the government in the 2019-20 budget.

As I mentioned, the Women's Economic Security Package is a really important element of how we're supporting this family law area, and we've provided $50 million over four years for family law property mediation. Providing mediation services will support families to reach agreements about their property splits between themselves, which will keep these families out of court. I think that's a really important point to make here. This measure is expected to provide an additional 31,200 couples across Australia with access to affordable property mediation each year. The government will also provide $10.3 million for legal aid commissions to run a two-year trial of lawyer-assisted mediation in each state and territory.

As I've said earlier, it's really important that we not only focus on how we can make our Family Court system easier to navigate by people seeking to use it but also aim to keep as many of these disputes out of the court system as possible. If we can help these families settle their family law disputes outside the court system, I think that is only ever seen as a good outcome for Australian families going through this difficult process.

We've also introduced a child support scheme which is designed to ensure parents take responsibility for the financial care of their children in line with their financial capacity to do so. The Child Support Scheme exists to assess and collect child support payments for the benefit of children of separated parents. Overall, this system will be providing services to 1.3 million separated parents and transfers approximately $3½ billion as of 30 June 2018 in financial support for approximately 1.1 million children. There has been substantial work undertaken to improve this system, and the government recently agreed to 18 of the 25 recommendations from the House of Representatives standing committee inquiry into the child support program. Of these recommendations, 12 have been implemented to date, and that reflects real improvements made to this system. As is always the case, we understand that there is more work to do in this area. We are continuing to implement the other recommendations out of that House of Representatives committee review.

The department delivers a range of services and programs under the Families and Children Activity, many with an early intervention and prevention focus. Left unaddressed, persistent disadvantage in childhood, as we know, has significant and long-lasting impacts on individuals, families and communities. That is why the Morrison government takes this issue so seriously. There is clear and persuasive evidence that prevention and early intervention to support positive child and family outcomes is more effective, and indeed more cost effective, than remedial responses. Services funded under the Families and Children Activity include universal and soft-entry services such as community playgroups and early childhood education programs, as well as more intensive programs such as counselling and relationship services for families at risk of breakdown and home visiting services that provide intensive parenting education and support.

The Morrison government's paramount concern is the safety and wellbeing of children. With this in mind, our priority is to support children to remain safely with their family and their community through prevention and early intervention measures. The National Framework for Protecting Australia's Children was developed with state and territory governments and the non-government sector to ensure children and young people are safe and well. The first three action plans under the national framework delivered many key achievements, including the appointment of the National Children's Commissioner, the development of the National Standards for Out-of-Home Care and the delivery of projects to improve service responses for families and promote better understanding of child wellbeing. The fourth action plan under this national framework for protecting Australia's children has a strong focus on early intervention and improved outcomes for children in out-of-home care and organisational settings.

In conclusion, all Australian governments agree that children have the right to grow up in a family that is loving, stable and safe, but we recognise that sometimes this isn't always the case, that incredibly sad things do happen to families and they are required to separate. That's why we, as a government, are focusing not only on preventing that from happening wherever we can but, in the sad instance that it does occur, ensuring that families are appropriately supported through the family law system generally and provided with services to mediate these separations outside of the court system. We are also, of course, enhancing the Family Court system and ensuring that it's easy to navigate and timely in addressing family separations. I'm certainly confident our commitment to ongoing improvements to the family law system and support for programs with a focus on early intervention and prevention will improve outcomes for our Australian children.

Anthony Chisholm (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) | Link to this | Hansard source

I just wanted to take issue with one point Senator Chandler raised, and that's about applauding the gender-neutral language when it comes to domestic violence on that side of the chamber. I'd be very cautious about that because what we know from the facts is that the victims of domestic violence aren't gender neutral. Females are overwhelmingly the victims of domestic violence. So, if you want to be politically correct, don't pick that issue to be politically correct on. What we know are the facts, and the facts are that it is women who are, unfortunately, the majority of the victims of domestic violence.

I think this issue that Senator Roberts raised is an important one, but it's a classic with Senator Roberts that he always focuses in on a couple of issues or a couple of people that suit his agenda. He doesn't actually seek a broad range of views. He doesn't try and get to the nub of the problem. He isn't trying to resolve this important issue and use the power that he and Senator Hanson have in this place to pursue an agenda that will ensure that this issue can be dealt with fairly—and there does need to be reform. Instead, Senator Roberts just seeks the narrow view that he already has and he tries to further foster that and cause divide and disquiet in the community. It's unfortunate that's what One Nation and Senator Roberts want to use their two important votes they have in this chamber for. Instead of trying to further the national interest or resolve a difficult situation, he's trying to seek division and encourage it wherever possible.

If you listened to Senator Roberts' speech, you would have the view that the Australian Brotherhood of Fathers are running around the countryside doing only good deeds. But the facts on record actually speak differently to that. When you look at their history, it is a chequered history of helping people who are going through very difficult family law scenarios. It's been reported in TheDaily Telegraph:

Instead of offering suggestions to help men cope with mental health problems and stress, the ABF tells blokes in crisis to fight back by "not consenting" to any legal orders.

Instead of confining himself to offering suggestions that help men cope with mental health problems and stress, Erikson has suggested they self-harm as a form of political protest.

"Don't hide away in a dark corner. Take yourself down to your state and federal members' office and let them witness your final act in person," Erikson recently posted on Facebook.

"One week where we see 44 men hack, slice, shoot, stab, hang or overdose at a MP's office and laws would change. It's bad enough they give up, why hide it?"

This is some advice that Mr Erikson has been on the public record saying, and this was reported in TheDaily Telegraph.

In 2017 it was reported that One Nation reached out to the website Blokes Advice to sound out what their huge membership wanted. They had a three-hour meeting, and in April 2017 members of the Facebook group Blokes Advice met with representatives of One Nation for what one of the group's administrators called 'a mashing of minds'. Facebook actually shut this group down in August of that year, after it was accused of glorifying rape and violence against women. It was immediately re-formed and administrators say that kind of post got shut down and wasn't allowed anymore. It is worth noting that Mr Erikson was very active in this group as well. This was reported on by the ABC.

It's clear, when you look at who Senator Roberts is actually relying on as part of this debate, that One Nation doesn't actually have the best interests of all those families involved in sorting this out. There's no doubt that there are significant legal challenges, and the fact that this government has been in power for six years and hasn't actually administered significant changes to assist in this only further prolongs the difficulties that many families are facing. I thought it was important to put on the record the context in which Senator Roberts comes to this debate. The fact that he is so narrow minded in pursing the objectives that he and One Nation want to pursue certainly needs to be acknowledged. And it does need to be recognised that the interest that One Nation has in this area isn't about getting the best outcomes for families in Queensland going through difficult scenarios; One Nation is actually trying to promote these people and give them a voice that is based on the predisposition of One Nation and what they want to pursue in this issue.

I also want to talk about the significant problems that we currently face with the family law system. It has led to unacceptable delays for vulnerable families, and particularly for children, and there's no doubt that the ineptitude of this government over the last six years has aided and abetted that. There have been many factors that have led to the current state of affairs: the failure of the government to reappoint judges in a timely manner for the past six years, the ever-growing funding shortages for legal assistance services and a number of inefficiencies, particularly within the family law system. There's no doubt that changes have to be made, and Labor's priority is making sure that these changes are right and are done for the correct reasons so that there is a sense of balance and fairness.

The Attorney-General, Christian Porter, spent most of last year pursuing legislation that would have abolished the Family Court system in this country altogether. The legislation was introduced without any consultation with the community or the legal profession. Incredibly, the government tried to push these proposed reforms through the parliament before the completion of a landmark review into the family law system by the Australian Law Reform Commission. The report was the most comprehensive review of the family law system in four decades, but the government was intent on ignoring it. Instead, it chose to base its proposed reforms on a six-week desktop review by two accountants. Thankfully, in the last week of parliament before the election, the minister was forced to back down from his proposed reforms when he realised he did not have the numbers to get these damaging changes through the parliament. In April 2019, shortly after backing away from his own reform proposal to abolish the Family Court system altogether, the minister finally released the Australian Law Reform Commission's report on the family law system.

The Australian Law Reform Commission has made 60 recommendations for reform, including that the resolution of family law disputes eventually be returned to the states and territories. Labor is carefully considering each of these recommendations in consultation with the many stakeholder groups inside the family law system, including Australian families who've been through the existing system, family lawyers and judges. Those discussions will ultimately inform the approach that we take to addressing these problems with the current family law system during this term of parliament. Sensible and evidence based reform of the family law system is long overdue and should be a high priority for politicians from all sides of politics. At the same time, Labor will continue to push back against any attempts from the minister and the government to ram through without proper consultation poorly considered and damaging reforms to the family law system.

The Family Court of Australia was established by the Whitlam government over four decades ago. Ensuring that the Family Court system works for Australian families has been and always will be a priority for Labor. Indeed, Labor does have a proud record in this area, and it is one that we're extremely frustrated about, having now watched the government's six years of inaction and six years of delays to changes. It has shown a real slowness to act when it comes to reform in this important area.

We understand that, for the many families who are going through a difficult separation, it is a very, very tough time, and there needs to be as much support for those families as possible. Unlike One Nation, we don't think that you should therefore take sides in that debate. You need to be even-handed and ensure that that the system is fair and that it be dealt with but also acknowledge that the families involved are going through a difficult period. From our personal experiences of observing friends and family members going through this, we know how difficult these challenges can be for the family unit. It is important that governments act in the best interests of all involved and ensure not only that the legal system is as fair as possible and as neutral as possible but also that issues can be resolved in a way where there isn't so much financial damage done to families. That is what Labor are committed to, and we want the government to act to ensure that families in Australia are better represented as a result.

Hollie Hughes (NSW, Liberal Party) | Link to this | Hansard source

Firstly, can I say at the outset that family conflict and separation are always heartbreaking. We all agree that children have the right to grow up in a family that's loving, stable and safe. Our paramount concern is the safety and wellbeing of children. That's why the government is taking action to improve Australia's family law system. Our commitment to making improvements to the family law system is to ensure that we help families separate in a safe, supportive and timely way.

The Morrison government has already committed to delivering structural reform of the federal family law courts to help end the unnecessary costs and delay for thousands of Australian families that arise from a split federal Family Court system. This will allow families to have their matters dealt with as efficiently as possible and under a single set of rules and procedures. These reforms will significantly improve the family law system. They'll reduce the backlog of matters before the family law courts and drive timely, cheaper and more consistent resolution of disputes for Australian families. It's estimated that these structural reforms have the potential, in time, to allow thousands of additional cases to be resolved each and every year.

The government will bring together the Family Court of Australia and the Federal Circuit Court of Australia, to be known as the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia. The FCFC will become, in effect, a single point of entry into the family law jurisdiction of the Federal Court system and will create a consistent pathway for Australian families in having their family law disputes dealt with in the federal courts. This government also commissioned the first comprehensive review of the family law system in 40 years. That review, released in April this year, contained 60 recommendations for the family law system. The government is carefully considering the ALRC's wide-ranging review of the family law system and is intent on ensuring the system works for Australian families, keeps them safe, and allows for efficient and timely separations.

The government's commitment to improvements to the family law system is clear from the range of significant measures it has taken to assist and protect separating families, including the establishment and now extension of specialist domestic violence units and health justice partnerships, which provide legal and social support assistance to vulnerable women experiencing family violence. The government is also establishing and extending family advocacy and support services, which provide duty lawyers at family law courts to provide services to families affected by family violence.

In the 2019-20 budget, an additional $7.8 million was committed over three years for dedicated men's support workers to be engaged in all locations. The dedicated men's and support workers will provide access to support services for both alleged perpetrators and male victims of family violence. There is $50 million over four years for family law property mediation as part of the Women's Economic Security Package; $11 million to improve information sharing between family law, family violence and child protection, including the co-location of state and territory family safety officials in family law courts and prohibiting perpetrators of family violence from cross-examining their victims in family law proceedings; $7 million to legal aid commissions to represent affected parties; and $10.7 million over four years for the family law courts to employ up to 17 additional qualified social workers and psychologists as family consultants.

These recent measures are on top of the $160 million per year for family law services to support people with family law disputes outside of court. These services include counselling and education programs, and were accessed by 70,000 men and 86,000 women last year. The Child Support Scheme is designed to ensure parents take responsibility for the ongoing financial care of their children in line with their financial capacity to do so. Child support assessments are generally based on the child support formula, which uses both parents' adjusted taxable income from the last relevant financial year. Overall, the child support system provides services to 1.3 million separated parents, and transfers $3.5 billion in financial support for approximately 1.1 million children.

There has already been substantial work undertaken to improve the system. The government agreed to 18 of the 25 recommendations of the House of Representatives inquiry into the child support program. Of these, 12 have been implemented to date, reflecting real improvements made to the system. These include the three priority recommendations that were addressed in the Family Assistance and Child Support Legislation Amendment (Protecting Children) Act 2018, and will assist in making around 700,000 child support cases fairer every year by: strengthening incentives to comply with court orders or to participate in dispute resolution processes about care; enabling changes in circumstances to be more easily reflected where parents have a child support agreement; allowing amended tax assessments to be used in a broader range of circumstances; and treating receiving parents with overpaid child support consistently with paying parents with debts.

Work is continuing to implement other agreed recommendations, including two recommendations which relate to services and mediation for parents to negotiate child support arrangements; a recommendation to conduct a performance audit of the scheme's legal enforcement service; and three more complex recommendations relating to the child support formula and related change-of-assessment processes. Together, these measures constitute significant changes and improvements to the scheme, and will provide ongoing improvements to children and parents.

Jess Walsh (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to say a few words on this motion. There is no doubt that there are significant problems with the family law system which lead to real heartache for many vulnerable families around Australia. In fact, we heard from Senator Hanson this morning about her own difficult experiences with family break-up, and I thank her for sharing those with the Senate. However, this motion is not well directed and it won't offer the help that families genuinely need today.

The child support program has already been reported on relatively recently by one of the committees of this parliament. The House of Representatives Standing Committee on Social Policy and Legal Affairs presented its report on the child support program in 2015. the report found that, generally speaking, the child support program was functioning as intended. That is not to say that it doesn't need significant improvement, and the committee did make 25 recommendations in its report—25 recommendations that the government have been, typically, slow to implement. But that should be no surprise to anyone in this place, because this is a government that has no plan to make life better for families in this country.

What we need is more support for families on the critical issues facing them, and one of those critical issues is family violence. We know that in Australia today one woman per week is murdered by a current or former partner. Family violence hurts—it hurts women and it hurts children—and its effects can be felt for generations. We know that one in three Australian women will experience physical violence in their lifetime. The only way that we'll successfully tackle men's violence against women is through a consistent and coordinated long-term approach. We need a united response in this place to change this. We need national leadership in this parliament to confront the persistent and shameful prevalence of violence against women and their children. There are many places that, as a parliament, we can put our attention: more support for frontline services, more options for emergency accommodation, more support for legal services for both women and men, and more safe and affordable housing for people escaping violence. As a country, we need to confront the underlying causes of family violence—that is, persistent gender inequality in this country today. We can do it by focusing on supporting respectful relationships in schools and by supporting men with programs to help them understand and change their behaviours. Of course, if Labor had been elected in May this year we would have legislated 10 days paid domestic violence leave as part of the National Employment Standards, because people experiencing family violence shouldn't have to choose between leaving a violent relationship and keeping their job. Families are under enormous pressure today and they need a united response and real leadership from this government.

What we need is more support for families who today, around the country, are facing incredible hardship. They want to know: what is the government's plan to help them out? Families are facing extreme cost-of-living pressures. Everything is going up. Bills are going up. Housing is going up. Child care, healthcare, transport—they're all going up. Meanwhile, under this government, family incomes are going backwards. Wages are just not keeping up, and living standards have declined under this Liberal government. Median household incomes have actually gone down under this government. What that means is that at kitchen tables around the country today people are making tough decisions about whether to pay their bills or whether to put food on the table. Families today are labouring under extreme household debt loads. Household debt has surged to record levels under this government. And these tough decisions are being made by families because this government has no plan for the economy in this country and no plan for a family budget. Under this government, economic growth is now at its lowest level since the global financial crisis.

All of this is putting massive pressure on families. I think about one of my Victorian constituents, a woman called Kylie who lives in the northern suburbs of Melbourne. She's a single mother of three children. Her wages have been flat for six years under this government. Meanwhile, housing costs have gone through the roof. Because her wages can't keep up with the skyrocketing costs of housing, she lives in a shared house with another family, with her three children, so that she can make the rent. These are the issues facing families. We need the government to take action on these issues now. With low wages, declining incomes, skyrocketing costs of living and extreme household debt, families are under enormous pressure in Australia today and they need a united response and national leadership from this government.

What about support for those families living on Newstart? Newstart payments are so low that people are getting stuck in poverty. Rather than being a temporary payment that helps get people back into work, it actually prevents them from getting work. Newstart payments are so low that people can't afford transport to even get to interviews. They can't afford appropriate clothes and equipment. They can't afford to access the education and training they need to get back to work. And what about the children in those families? In Australia, one of the richest countries in the world, everyone should be able to afford the basics and every child should get the very best start in life.

It's not just my side of the parliament that thinks that Newstart is too low. Members of the government's own backbench believe it needs to be increased. Even former leaders of the Liberal Party have come forward to argue the case for the Newstart payment to finally get a raise. We must ask: despite overwhelming community support with 75 per cent of Australians supporting an increase to Newstart, why won't the government move to grant a raise in the Newstart rate and why doesn't the government have a plan for those low-income and vulnerable families?

Indeed, instead of looking to increase the rate of Newstart, this government would rather penalise these Australians further by rolling out the flawed cashless welfare card and by subjecting them to mandatory drug tests. It is so insulting; it is so out of touch. What these low-income and vulnerable Australians need is a united response and national leadership from this government. But given this third-term coalition government's record, I cannot see this happening on any of these issues, and these are the issues that are of real concern to Australian families today.

While there are many pressing issues for families around our country, I don't believe that this motion is the right way to go for them. While the government has been slow to implement the recommendations to improve the child support system, this motion won't do anything to speed the government up and it won't help Australian families confront the major challenges they face today under this third-term Liberal government.

Pauline Hanson (Queensland, Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party) | Link to this | Hansard source

I recall the first meeting I had with the former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull in 2016 after I was newly elected. I sat there at his Bligh Street office. He'd just poured a fresh cup of green tea, and I hit him with my No. 1 priority of family law reform. He said, 'That's a tough one, Pauline.' I'll never forget those words. I felt as though he was mentally building a brick wall to the very suggestion of fixing our broken family law system. And here I am today, with my sledgehammer, still trying to break down that same brick wall that continues to prevent a review into the family law system. By the close of business today another three funerals will have been announced by the families of men who've taken their own lives, and the unjustified murder of another woman will have occurred by Friday because of our life-destroying family law system.

On Friday, I outlined a number of suggestions I believe are required to modernise our country's outdated child support system. My press release stated I was calling for a joint parliamentary inquiry into family law. I wrote that it's time to overhaul the 1988 child support system with a three-point plan to repair the payment calculation so that non-custodial parents are able to continue to meet the needs of their children without creating a lifestyle for their former partners. You see, the current system penalises non-custodial parents who work overtime and take on a second job. They are forced to pay the custodial parent based on before tax earnings. It's my belief that child support calculations should be based on a standard 38-hour week. Therefore, it would quarantine overtime payments and the earnings from a second job. By doing this, it would bring child support payments in line with Australia's superannuation ordinary time earnings. In other words, employers must pay 9.5 per cent superannuation on guaranteed hours. Overtime is not guaranteed hours; therefore, superannuation does not have to be paid as per the National Employment Standards. Why should a person who decides to work their guts out on their days off lose an enormous chunk of that money? It not only deters a person from putting in the hard yards, but it prevents the non-custodial parent from getting back on their feet and ahead in life.

I also believe a new child support formula should be broken into three categories where non-custodial parents are obliged to meet the needs of a child in prep, primary and high school. I hear daily complaints from non-custodial parents, predominantly men, who tell me that they are being fleeced by their former partners, who often deny access to the child yet reap large proportions of their former partner's before tax earnings that never fully benefit the child. I've sent a detailed term of reference to inquire into family law to Attorney-General Christian Porter and have called on the government to hold a 12-month inquiry that I would chair. If the government agrees to this inquiry, it's important we take it to areas right across the country and not just to the major cities. All Australians deserve a voice on our broken family law system, so I'm prepared to go to far-reaching parts of the country to hear from them.

I must thank The CourierMail for continuing to give me a voice on this matter, because most other media are silent on the toxic family law legislation this place has created. I put these same comments on my Facebook page and received more than 1,700 comments. Let me read you a few. Lara Middleton said:

CSa definately needs an overhaul, sooner rather than later. Every year it goes up more, the adverage wages doesnt go up to cover it either. Shouldnt go on earning before tax.

I wish there was more we could do to help support you Pauline!

I wish there was something we all could do instead of sitting here hoping you can see this through.

Samad Khan said:

I disagree with alot of things you say but with this matter I'm with you 100%. If you get this sorted you'll have my vote next time.

Thanks Samad! Jed Richardson said:

False accusations of dv to gain full custody of children, thus denying other parent and children acces to each other and alianater gets alianated parents money as well!

When accusations are found to be untrue no charges laid by police as they state it can deter real victims of dv from coming forward

What a—

stuffed up—

system !

Mark Maskell said:

About time somebody stands up for the rights of the ordinary person maybe she might make an even playing field

Jason Rutkowski said:

The entire system needs a Royal Commission investigation, nothing less!

Eva Griebe said:

Please keep up the fight on this Pauline. It's too late for my husband who paid an exorbitant amount of child support to a woman who didn't work, and for a child he couldn't see … But please fix it for others.

Anthony Latella said:

Thankyou Pauline!!! This is an issue I've wanted to see tackled for the last 13 years..

I had put in so many hours of overtime over years to try and get myself somewhere comfortable but after having to pay soo much more after giving up weekends with my child due to working overtime I simply said enough is enough and no longer try to make any extra money to have a just a little extra. Child support from a previous relationship pretty much stops me from working overtime and trying to provide extra for my new family. I don't feel it's fair to have to give up my weekends working and spending time with my kids only to get no where ahead. System is completely broken and most payee parents are continually screwed by CSA.

Margie Atkinson said:

Great work Pauline Hanson, push this to the hilt. Your ideas are 100% correct & must be implemented.

And Turtle Hayton said:

Thank you Pauline! I don't mind paying child support but the more I earn the more I pay and does not makenit worthwhile advancing in my career. More earnings = more tax and more child support so I'm worse off.

I could read these comments to you for hours. I sat up over the weekend and went through so many of them. The stories are heartbreaking, and you can feel the deep seated pain throughout each person's individual story. If there is one thing the Prime Minister should do tonight, it's jump on my Facebook page and just spend 30 minutes going through some of the comments. In fact, I'd recommend you all take the time to ask your own Facebook followers what they think about a royal commission or an inquiry into family law. I can guarantee you that the response from people will be strongly supportive. This goes beyond party politics, colour or creed, and it is time we fixed it.

I can speak openly about my own case to do with child support. My husband from my first marriage paid me absolutely nothing. I supported those two children—one as young as six months old and the other four years old—and I struggled to end make ends, but I got there at the end of the day. As for my second husband, all I wanted from him was support of $20 for each child, and he didn't even want to pay that. The courts wanted me to go after it, the solicitors wanted me to go to $50, and I said, 'No, I'm quite happy with $20 each,' and he wouldn't even pay that. When he want to drag me through the courts, I said, 'You know what? Keep your money. I'm not interested. I will rear my children and pay for their education myself,' which I did.

There are parents out there who truly want to see their children, want to have a connection with their children, who would gladly pay child support if it is fair and just. That's all these people are asking for: what is fair and just. Don't destroy a person's life by making them pay exorbitant amounts of child support. It is fair to consider a 38-hour week and for them to pay their fair share of child support to support their children, but don't deny them access to see their children.

As I said earlier today, get over the hurt, the hate and the pain, and move on with your lives. At the end of the day, it's all about the children. And, if that means that you pay your way in making sure the kids are well looked after, fed and clothed and get a good education, that is what is important. But a lot of these people will not work and will give up their jobs to go on welfare, because the system is charging them too much and they can see themselves never getting ahead in life. Make child support fair and just, and a lot more people will face their responsibilities and go and get a job, and get on with their lives.

Question agreed to.