Multi-Agency Protection Service

The Hon. J.A. DARLEY (15:19): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for Sustainability Environment and Conservation, representing the Minister for Communities and Social Inclusion, a question regarding the Multi-Agency Protection Service.

Leave granted.

The Hon. J.A. DARLEY: The Multi-Agency Protection Service (MAPS), brings together personnel from SAPOL, DECD, SA Health, Housing SA, child protection and the Corrections department to generate a coordinated response to high-risk cases of domestic violence. MAPS was introduced as a pilot program in 2014 and has gained both national and international attention following the success of the program in South Australia. Despite the state government allocating moneys from the budget to expand it, I understand that the service is still deemed a project and, as such, does not provide certainty for the clients or staff. Given the success of the program, can the minister advise whether MAPS will continue as it currently stands as a project, or will it be funded by the government?

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER (Minister for Sustainability, Environment and Conservation, Minister for Water and the River Murray, Minister for Climate Change) (15:20): I thank the honourable member for his most important question. The Multi-Agency Protection Service, as I understand it, is an initiative that is about four years old now and has brought together a lot of government agencies to try to deal with this very difficult issue of domestic violence. His question is about ongoing funding, and that's important. I undertake to take that question to the minister in the other place and seek a response.

The other thing that it is really important that we understand is that this is an issue that all of us have responsibility to pursue—all of us in this place as individual members, but also all governments. I understand that, in recent times, a call has gone out by state premiers to the federal government to join us in a campaign against domestic violence and to bring together the resources of state and federal government to try to combat this evil. I understand that Premier Palaszczuk of Queensland, the Premier of Victoria and the Premier of South Australia have all—

The Hon. J.S.L. Dawkins: Don't you remember Andrews' name?

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER: Well, now that you've reminded me—

The Hon. K.J. Maher: You're big on titles. Now you're telling him off for not using names. You can't have it both ways.

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER: The Hon. Mr Dawkins doesn't ask me—

The Hon. K.J. Maher: You've got no consistency. He is a disgrace to this chamber.

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER: The Hon. Mr Dawkins—

The Hon. J.S.L. Dawkins: Well, you were able to remember Palaszczuk. You obviously couldn't remember Daniel Andrews. I bet you were going to call him Andrew Daniels.

The PRESIDENT: Will honourable members acknowledge that the minister is on his feet?

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER: The Hon. Mr Dawkins of course, doesn't ask me if I can't remember the name of the Premier of South Australia, so it is a funny question to ask, Mr Dawkins, but there you go. What I am pointing out is the absolute failure of the federal government in this area of addressing this terrible scourge of domestic violence. When the premiers of states come together and ask the federal government to unite with them to work on these issues, you would expect the federal government to say, 'Absolutely, this is something that we all need to work together on,' but, of course, all we have heard from the federal government is stony cold silence.