Statutes Amendment (Intervention Orders and Penalties) Bill

Second Reading

Adjourned debate on second reading.

(Continued from 17 February 2021.)

Mr ODENWALDER (Elizabeth) (11:03): I appreciate the opportunity to speak on this bill, and I thank the member for Reynell, the shadow minister, for bringing this into the house. I do not say this sort of thing very often, and I hope no-one is listening, but I was quietly optimistic at the election of this government in that they appeared to be taking domestic violence seriously. I was buoyed by the fact that they were supporting Labor's idea to introduce a domestic violence disclosure scheme similar to that in the UK—or at least that is what we were proposing to be discussed.

Of course, that optimism has proved to be misplaced, as we see inaction from this Attorney-General and inaction from this government, so much so that the shadow minister and Labor have been forced to be the legislators in this area, bringing forward good policies. The Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme was something I brought to this parliament a long time ago. As I said, I was buoyed by the fact that the Attorney-General took it on board and progressed it to a certain extent.

The Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme, as members will know, is essentially in two parts: the right to ask and the right to know. It seems the emphasis has been on the former rather than the latter, while in the UK these things work hand in hand. The right to know, for those members who are not familiar with the scheme, gives police the power, in certain circumstances, to proactively warn a woman or a person in a relationship that their partner has a history of domestic violence and has certain flags.

The way that is constructed is different across different jurisdictions, but essentially it gives police proactively, in real time, the power to warn women that their partner may well be abusive. I was very disappointed that that was not included. I do read that the Attorney-General is looking at this now, and I assume the member for Elder is assisting her in that endeavour. We also hear talk of a register of domestic violence offenders. In my mind, they could very well be one and the same thing. I will wait to see the detail.

I was not a police officer for a particularly long time, but I myself, not to mention the thousands of police officers who are still working in very long and distinguished careers, went to probably hundreds of domestic violence situations of varying degrees. A concept like the right to know disclosure scheme would have been an important tool in visiting a house the police may never have visited before. It may be a victim who has never called the police before. It would immediately come up with some sort of flag and the police could choose, under certain circumstances, to proactively disclose that this person may well be a danger to that woman and then set in train whatever services she may need.

That is a bit of a digression, but I do want to put on the record that I am disappointed with the inaction of the government thus far. I hope that they do progress with the right to know. I will be interested to see what the legislation around some sort of register looks like. To me, it may be one and the same thing. Part of the problem has been—and I believe still is—that the labelling of domestic violence offences is different across agencies. It is not consistent even within SAPOL.

There have been great leaps forward, and now in the published statistics we see domestic violence offences that involve property damage separately listed, which is a good thing, but I think we still need to move towards a system where police can readily identify dangerous people quickly and, hopefully, under certain circumstances, disclose that danger to women.

This bill, however, is essentially an extension of what previous governments have done, in that it enhances the intervention order scheme. This is the next step in advancing that scheme. I was very proud to be part of the Weatherill government—indeed, the Rann government, I think—who introduced interim intervention orders so that police could remove a woman, or remove the danger from situations, proactively without recourse to a court in the first instance.

These interim intervention orders were altogether a good thing and used extensively by police. Police have, over the last 20 or so years, paid much more attention to the dangers of domestic violence, and their responses have by any measure become much better in terms of removing women from dangerous situations. This bill is an extension of that. It is the next step.

I am dismayed that the Attorney-General is not supporting this. It simply increases penalties. Importantly, it removes expiation notices. We read day after day of people breaching domestic violence orders. These people are given fines, which are often never paid. I think that a custodial sentence in many cases is far more appropriate, not only to protect women but also to send the message to the community that these sorts of behaviours are longer acceptable.

I support this bill. I urge the government to change its mind, and I urge the member for Elder to change her mind on this bill and support the member for Reynell. This is just one of a package of measures that the opposition is introducing or will introduce in order to combat the scourge of domestic violence, and I urge members to support this bill.

Mrs POWER (Elder) (11:09): I had planned to begin by indicating to the house that the government intends to support an amended version of this bill but, given the member for Elizabeth's words, I just want to say how utterly disappointing it is. When I came to this place, I received a really clear message that domestic and family violence was an area in which there was bipartisan support. It was an area in which politicians and parliamentarians did not play politics. I think on this side of the house we have certainly honoured that, but I have been so disappointed—and yet again today—by those opposite, who do not honour that and are more interested in playing politics than really worrying about women's safety. Your words are very disappointing.

In any case, I do rise today to indicate to the house that the government intends to support an amended version of the bill. I want to acknowledge the member for Reynell, who has brought this bill to the house, and to thank her not only for that but for her genuine commitment and work outside this house to tackle domestic and family violence.

I was hoping to say that all sides of this house know the importance of doing what we can to keep more women and children safe. I think that is the case, but I there are some members who could do a better job in putting that first and foremost, rather than unnecessary scaremongering or making claims that are just not true.

In any case, I also want to acknowledge the recent, heartbreaking death of nine-month-old baby Kobi. Something like this does not just affect the people who know her, the family and friends, but impacts the whole community. I think it is fair to say we were all left devastated in that wake. Of course, this came only days after Kelly Wilkinson was killed in Queensland by her ex-partner, her body burned with her three children in the house.

This violence must stop. We must continue to try new measures, new initiatives and indeed new legislation and effect the change that will save lives. I have just come from a national task force that was called by Senator Anne Ruston, where attorneys-general and ministers responsible for overseeing police have come together and in no uncertain terms clearly expressed their commitment and desire to continue to work to ensure that women and their children can feel safe.

This has certainly been a priority of the Marshall Liberal government from day one and continues to be a priority. We are doing more than ever before to support and protect at-risk women and their children. We have committed a record $21 million in funding, more than any previous government in South Australia. We are committed to ensuring women, their children and any person who experiences domestic and family violence or is at risk of it is well supported and that any measures we must make do actually result in effective change and outcomes.

I think that talks to the slightly delay in passing this legislation. I recognise, as I mentioned, the member for Reynell's good work in this space. On this side, we just want to make sure that we have done our due diligence to ensure that there are no unintended consequences, which we know is something that does occur when initially drafting legislation. In fact, the best legislation comes from a number of people and parties looking over it from all different angles, a number of stakeholders reviewing it and giving input to make sure there are no unintended consequences.

There will be a couple of amendments that we will propose just to be able to safeguard against that, but certainly we support the intention of the bill. Indeed, it already builds on the work that we have done in terms of amending the Intervention Orders (Prevention of Abuse) Act previously.

Yesterday, with the Attorney-General and the Minister for Human Services, we announced that here in South Australia we will continue our work exploring nation-leading reforms and further legislative amendments to build on the meaningful action we have already taken in this space. The reforms we are looking at are ambitious, but when it comes to preventing domestic and family violence it is vital we can continue to build on the extensive progress we have already made as a government and governments before us made too.

We know that collectively more needs to be done to stop the senseless deaths and lifelong impacts on victims and survivors. This includes changes not only in governance, policy and legislation but, most importantly, changes in culture. One of the things that was discussed earlier this morning was that sometimes the barriers are not in the legislative change—there is support on both sides of the house for that to occur—but in how that legislation is implemented and the cultural change that needs to occur out in the community to support it and really achieve the outcomes that we want it to achieve.

We know that collectively more needs to be done, as I mentioned, and it involves changing attitudes and approaches and not only working hard to ensure women and children and all South Australians can feel safe but, crucially, stopping the violence before it starts. Certainly, that is why we have had a big focus on delivering a range of prevention and early intervention measures to discourage offending, ensuring that those perpetrators, those who do perpetrate violence, face harsh penalties and are supported with wraparound services to be able to change their behaviour.

Changes to this very legislation were brought to this parliament by the Marshall Liberal government and passed in this house in 2018. At the time, we also strengthened penalties for those who repeatedly breach intervention orders, who now face up to four years in gaol or fines of up to $20,000. This legislation brought far steeper penalties than previously existed under any former government. We were serious about it serving as a strong deterrent to would-be perpetrators and ensuring that those who do break the law are punished for their actions.

Our Attorney-General has also led the way in South Australia in creating a new standalone criminal offence for strangulation. Evidence shows us that strangulation is a precursor for domestic violence homicides, and by creating a separate offence courts have greater discretion to treat this as a more serious offence. This legislation also empowers police to arrest domestic violence offenders under this offence.

We have got on with the job of doing more than ever before to keep South Australians safe, and if there is more that can be done to provide stronger deterrents to violence, such as what is provided in this bill, the government is supportive of that. To prevent and deter violence we have already committed funding for the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme. Not only did we commit the funding; we did the work and we have rolled it out. I think that has been a great initiative in South Australia where people can get access to the information they need to be able to make more informed choices.

We are now looking at the 'your right to know' model, which would mandate proactive disclosures by police to those deemed to be at risk of domestic and family violence. I think it has served us well in some ways that we have done the work in terms of the right to ask. We have certainly been sure to collect the data and the evidence so that we can effectively evaluate that program and inform other initiatives like the 'your right to know' model and, importantly, share it with other jurisdictions. We want things that have worked well for South Australia to be rolled out all across the country where the other states might like to do so, because at the end of the day I think it is fair to say there is a strong commitment in Australia to ending domestic and family violence.

We are also exploring the development of a domestic violence offenders register, with a requirement for perpetrators to disclose this in certain circumstances. As I have mentioned, these new initiatives really just build on the incredible work that has already occurred to roll out a range of initiatives and tackle domestic and family violence.

We have invested $1.86 million towards the national sexual violence prevention campaign Stop it at the Start, and I think that early indicators suggest that continues to be a success. I know that yesterday the Attorney-General outlined a range of other initiatives that we are looking at exploring as well as covering off on the work that is already underway.

I think it is important to acknowledge the incredible work that has been done in the past few years. To the organisations that have been involved in delivering those initiatives, to all the people in the sector and to those with lived experience who have shared their experience with us so we could do all we could to tackle domestic and family violence, I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge them.

I am conscious of the time, so I will wrap up by just once again thanking the member for Reynell. I think it is fair to say that we have worked together previously to address this issue, and certainly on this side of the house we are absolutely committed to tackling domestic and family violence.

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN (Stuart—Minister for Energy and Mining) (11:19): I have no doubt whatsoever that all members who have risen to speak on this bill are completely committed to addressing domestic and family violence, as are all the other members in the chamber as well. I appreciate the fact that we have limited time today, so it has not provided the opportunity for all members who would have liked to make a positive contribution to do so.

I am very proud of our government and the work that we are doing in this area. I am very proud that we have an assistant minister with particular responsibility for domestic violence. I think that is the first time that has happened in a South Australian government. I also value the work that the opposition is trying to contribute to this very important area, and we have a bill here from the member for Reynell which is put forward for us to make a constructive change.

I am advised that the member for Reynell and the Attorney-General are very close to reaching an agreement on a government amendment to this private member's bill. Both the government and the opposition have come to a very sensible agreement today that the government will support this bill at the second reading stage so that it can go into committee today so that the good work that has happened between the Attorney-General, the member for Elder and the member for Reynell can continue.

The government will, of course, reserve its right on the bill's third reading and its final position once those discussions have finished and we have all had the opportunity in the committee stage to discuss this amendment and see exactly where we land. I am optimistic that we have a very positive way forward here.

We can have some healthy debates at times and a few disagreements here and there about the best way to address these issues. Of course, the Attorney-General has a greater responsibility than anybody else in this chamber to consider how well-meaning proposals might actually be applied and whether there might be some potentially unintended consequences from a legal perspective. While all those things are relevant, I am very optimistic that we will reach an agreement on that.

On behalf of the government, I say again that we will support this bill at the second reading stage, reserve our right for the third reading, and we will enter into the committee stage today so that we can collectively and constructively work through the amendment at the very next opportunity.

Ms HILDYARD (Reynell) (11:22): In summing up, I first place on record my deepest condolences, love and support for the family of baby Kobi, her mum especially, and all who loved her. Our community remains in deep shock that Kobi was brutally murdered by her father, the very person whose fundamental role it was to protect this precious girl from harm. Our community, I have no doubt, will continue to wrap our collective arms around all who loved her.

As I did in my inaugural speech in this place and as I have done many times since, I wholeheartedly again place on record my steadfast commitment to do whatever I can to progress legislation to raise awareness to ensure that women and children in our community can live their lives free from violence.

I thank all the brave women who have made their voices heard in the past weeks and months. To those who cannot speak for one reason or another, thank you and stay strong. To all the children, families and friends of the 60-odd women who are murdered each year in Australia by partners or former partners, it is for you and the loved ones you mourn that I introduce this bill. It is for those who live in fear in their homes, at work, when they are out with the constant worry of what their ex-partner might try next, of what a particular breach may look like.

When I introduced this bill in June last year, it was done in the wake of the tragic murder of Hannah Clarke and her three beautiful children who were murdered by a man who had continually breached intervention orders. Today, we discuss this bill after, sadly, another Queensland woman, Kelly Wilkinson, a Gold Coast mother of three, was allegedly murdered in her backyard just a few weeks back by her violent former partner who also had a significant history of violence against women.

Enough is enough. While these are not isolated incidents, the sheer brutality and futility of these three murders have shocked our nation. It is abundantly clear that some repeat offenders have not got the message that violence against women and children is never, ever okay. In too many cases, we see offenders systematically breach orders as their violent and controlling behaviours escalate. Fines do not provide the necessary protection for women and children or rehabilitation for offenders. Sadly, history shows that those who contravene intervention orders are more likely to violently offend.

These new measures make it abundantly clear that if you breach an intervention order, you are likely to face a custodial sentence. Our community is rightly demanding action towards the prevention of violence, harassment and disrespect towards women. These new measures represent clear action and make it abundantly clear that if you breach an intervention order you are likely to face a custodial sentence. Yes, they are severe, some may say harsh, but nowhere near as harsh as being murdered, maimed or assaulted by a partner or former partner. Put simply, the message in this bill is clear: if you do not want to have a sentence hanging over your head, do not subject women and children to violence, fear or intimidation.

I am hopeful these laws, combined with other foreshadowed legislative changes to other domestic violence laws, will help to keep South Australian women safer. We must continue to listen to the loud, angry and determined voices of South Australian women that were amplified last month. In passing this bill, we are indicating that we will listen, that we will all do whatever we can to ensure that there is not one more and that there is no more violence, no more excuses for those who continue to harass, abuse and harm women. Women and children deserve to feel safe and secure in our community, in their homes, places that should be places of comfort and sanctuary, and those who seek to deny them this basic right must start facing appropriate consequences. Through the passage of this bill, they will.

I sincerely thank my Labor colleagues for their steadfast support of this reform. I thank the government and particularly the member for Elder for her work in this space and for her words today. I thank the crossbenchers for their vital support of this important reform, and I am really pleased that we have been able to progress this together, that there has been a move from the original opposition.

Our South Australian community is demanding change and, rightly, everyone expects us in this place to do whatever is within our power to make it. Thank you again to all who have spoken. Thank you to Zita at the Women's Legal Service for her advice. Thank you to Uniting Communities and many other organisations for their work on this bill, and thank you to the many brave women who have spoken up about their experiences.

Bill read a second time.

Committee Stage

In committee.

Clause 1.

Progress reported; committee to sit again.