Body Image Campaign

The Hon. J.M.A. LENSINK (14:26): Supplementary question arising from the minister's answer: do we therefore take it that the minister believes that the campaign that is about to be embarked upon is more important than this particular body image campaign for young women, given the massive, disproportionate amount of funding allocated?

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for Employment, Higher Education and Skills, Minister for Science and Information Economy, Minister for the Status of Women, Minister for Business Services and Consumers) (14:26): That is absolutely outrageous, and I would have thought the Hon. Michelle Lensink would have approached this in a far more sensible way. I have already outlined the significant financial contribution we have made to women and violence towards women. We know that that is about a continuum: on one extreme end we have violence against women and domestic violence, and at the other end we have attitudes that are cultivated around disrespect and devaluing women, and we know that body image is linked to that. We have contributed significant resources and will continue to contribute significant resources to looking after our women and particularly our young girls.