Domestic and Family Violence

Mr TEAGUE (Heysen) (15:31): My question is again to the Minister for Women and the Prevention of Domestic and Family Violence. Has the minister since Thursday last week attended any sporting, tourism or other public events which the Premier has also attended?

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

Mr TEAGUE: I can ask the question again.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! Member for Cheltenham, you are warned. The member for Elder is warned. Member for Chaffey, order!

Mr TEAGUE: My question is to the Minister for Women and the Prevention of Domestic and Family Violence. Has the minister since Thursday last week attended any sporting, tourism or other public events which the Premier has also attended?

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD (Reynell—Minister for Child Protection, Minister for Women and the Prevention of Domestic and Family Violence, Minister for Recreation, Sport and Racing) (15:32): Thank you so much, Mr Speaker, and I can't quite bring myself, as I usually do, to thank the shadow minister for the question, because I find the question despicable.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! There is a point of order, which the Chair must turn to immediately.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: Standing order 98: commentary on a question like that is clearly debate.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! Order, member for Florey!

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD: Again, I am really saddened by this politicisation of something that many of us are absolutely devastated about—absolutely devastated about.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Newland!

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD: I didn't want to make some of the points that I am about to make, but in light of this particular question that has been asked can I just say that just earlier I absolutely acknowledged that we have more to do as a sector, as a government, as an entire community, and I rightly acknowledge that all of us in the community, all of us in this place have more to do. But I also set out a comprehensive list of actions that this government has taken that we committed to a long time ago. Some of the actions—

Mr Brown interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Florey!

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD: Some of the actions that we are taking are actions that I moved for repeatedly from opposition—repeatedly from opposition, twice.

Mr Brown interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Florey!

Mr Whetstone interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Chaffey, order!

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD: I moved legislation to criminalise coercive control from opposition. I moved legislation from opposition to electronically monitor those who had been charged—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Florey is warned.

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD: —with serious domestic violence offences—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Chaffey!

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD: —as a condition of their bail. I moved—

Mr Brown interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Florey is warned for a final time—

Mr Whetstone interjecting:

The SPEAKER: —joining the member for Chaffey on a final warning. I am not in the mood; I am not. The member for Florey is on a final warning, and if you want to join him you can continue to interject.

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD: I moved from opposition a bill to criminalise coercive control. I moved for the experience of domestic violence to be enshrined in the Equal Opportunity Act as a ground of discrimination: not supported. My coercive control bill: delayed, delayed, delayed, delayed. My Wicked campers bill: two years delayed. Originally, I had a bill—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD: I moved a bill—

The Hon. S.C. Mullighan interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The Treasurer is called to order.

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD: I moved a bill from opposition a really, really important bill to increase—

Mr TEAGUE: Point of order, sir.

The SPEAKER: Minister—

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD: —penalties for breaches of domestic violence intervention orders. Those opposite—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Elder is warned. The member for Heysen under 134.

Mr TEAGUE: Standing order 98(a). There is a question: has the minister attended at a public event at which the Premier has attended since last Thursday? I might say, following the non answer of the previous question, it's the same point.

The SPEAKER: Member for Heysen, you know well that it is not an opportunity for a monologue from you in relation to the standing orders, and I wouldn't make those comments, except to say that this is maybe the second or third time in the last two weeks that you have done it. Let me take you to Speaker Eastick's ruling in 1979, and the circumstances in which he became Speaker might be of interest to you, member for Heysen:

Although members, including Ministers, may not debate the answer to a question, Ministers have always been allowed more latitude than have other members. This has been the practice in this House and in the House of Commons for many years.

So I will listen carefully, but this house has been receiving some heavy news recently and I will not tolerate the type of gamesmanship that sometimes characterises the last week of sitting, if this is to be the last week of sitting, so we will turn to the minister.

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD: Thank you very much, Mr Speaker. As I was saying, one of the really important measures that I moved from opposition was a bill to increase penalties for breaches of domestic violence intervention orders because we know, sadly, that that period after an intervention order is put in place is one of the most dangerous times for a woman who has been experiencing violence. That's why I moved it. Originally, those opposite would not support it. It was only when members of the crossbench—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD: —decided to—

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: Point of order, sir.

The SPEAKER: There is a point of order, which I will hear under 134.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: Standing order 98: the question went directly to public events at which the minister and the Premier were both present—and the answer, with 30 seconds left, we are awaiting.

The SPEAKER: There is some merit in the point of order that has been raised with me. Minister, I take you back to the question.

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD: I will just conclude that that bill was only passed when the crossbench decided—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD: —to support it. Those opposite cut funding to Catherine House and to the Domestic Violence Court Assistance Service. What I will say in conclusion is that I find it just abhorrent that that is the path they go down: to someone and to a party absolutely who has supported—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD: —and stood alongside brave victim survivors of domestic violence—

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD: —for years, and that is what they've got. I don't have a thing to—

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: Point of order, sir.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! Minister, there is a point of order, but it also may be that your time has expired. Do you wish to continue your remarks?

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD: No.

The SPEAKER: Very well, I turn to the opposition side.