Question Time

Child Sexual Abuse

The Hon. L.A. HENDERSON (15:26): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Attorney-General a question regarding child sexual abuse.

Leave granted.

The Hon. L.A. HENDERSON: Early last year, a Liberal opposition motion that called on the Malinauskas Labor government to urge their federal counterparts to adopt a policy addressing a legal loophole around superannuation for victim survivors of child sexual abuse passed the Legislative Council. I note the discussion paper from 19 January 2023 and the close of the consultation period on 16 February 2023. It is my understanding from media reports that the government had intended to bring legislation to the parliament within the first half of 2023, but to my understanding this has not yet been done. My questions to the minister are:

1. When was the last time you spoke or wrote to your federal counterparts regarding this issue?

2. Has the minister been provided with an indication from his federal counterparts as to when this legislation will be introduced, noting that they are now in their second term and it is well past 2023?

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Deputy Premier, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Attorney-General, Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector, Special Minister of State) (15:27): I thank the honourable member for her question. I don't have the exact date but certainly I have written a number of times to my federal counterpart in relation to this. There is a difference between us: as the honourable shadow minister says, they pass motions in parliaments and what we do is contact the federal minister directly to ask them to do things. So there is a big difference between—

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order!

The Hon. K.J. MAHER: —what the opposition has represented today as the sum total of their efforts and what the government has done. I have written a number of times directly to the federal minister responsible. We would like to see this change happen.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order!

The Hon. K.J. MAHER: There is a very good reason we would like to see this change happen: because we have taken a zero-tolerance approach to child sexual abuse in South Australia. We have some of the toughest laws anywhere in the country. Coming into effect this year are laws that a second serious sexual offence against a child, a person who gets jail time for a second time is subject to indefinite detention. That means a person will be locked up for the rest of their natural life unless they can demonstrate to a court they are no longer a threat to the community, and even if they do they will face the possibility of the rest of their life on electronic monitoring. We take a very, very serious approach to this.

Recently, with the Beach Volleyball World Championships being played in South Australia, there was a Dutch national who the Dutch team was sending to South Australia to play in those championships. We made representations to the federal minister responsible for immigration, making it very clear that the South Australian government on behalf of the South Australian people did not want that person here in this state, and the person was refused a visa. We take a very strong stand on this and we will continue to do so. I thank the honourable member for her question.