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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2021-10-27 Daily Xml
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Grievance Debate

Children in State Care

Ms HILDYARD (Reynell) (15:21): As has been the case on several occasions in this place, I rise with a heavy heart: heavy because, again, one of the most vulnerable children in our state, a child in the care of this government, has been sexually abused by a predator.

South Australians were utterly shocked and saddened last year when they learned that two 13-year-old girls in care had been abused by paedophiles; one of them subsequently became pregnant and one, we understand, was pregnant when abused—13-year-old children. They are 13-year-old children whom the minister has the ultimate responsibility to keep safe. They are horrific cases which the minister was utterly unaware of until they were reported in the media.

With sadness and shock, South Australians learned last week that another child in care has now tragically been sexually abused, that another child was not safe. The minister has said repeatedly in this place that she does not talk about individual cases. She has also spoken endlessly about government programs that it is, frankly, difficult to get a handle on what they actually are. What she never, ever speaks of is her responsibility in all of this mess.

Our questions today were not about the intricate details of what this child had to endure. Our questions were clear. What they focused on is what children in care, their families and indeed all South Australians deserve to know and that is: how on earth another vulnerable teen in care was abused, what is the minister doing to prevent this, what systems are failing when a child in care can be driven to a predator's house and raped after being targeted on dating app Grindr.

What our community also deserves to know goes to what Judge Rice detailed in his report following the minister's handling of those horrendous cases of two 13-year-old girls in care who were sexually abused by paedophiles, and that is: what responsibility the minister personally takes for what Judge Rice described as her 'significant failure' in relation to those two cases.

Our community are so tired of these horrendous cases of abuse happening. They are also utterly, utterly tired of refusals to answer, the refusal to front media, the shifting of blame, the ongoing protection racket that sees this minister try to avoid scrutiny time after time. Today, she again attempted to evade giving clear answers, including on exactly when she knew about this latest terrible case. One must ask: was it when she was informed again by media? She evaded questions on how many children in care are on dating apps.

When terrible things happen on your watch, you have to front up, answer questions and make changes to ensure that horrific incidents of abuse do not happen again. You have to take responsibility and, to do that, you have to feel that responsibility and act in a way that shows you feel that responsibility and that you will relentlessly examine the systems and ask the questions to ensure that change is actually made.

This minister just does not seem to do that, nor does she seem to take responsibility for the skyrocketing increase in the number of children in care, the staffing crisis in the Department for Child Protection, the alarming levels of unanswered calls to the Child Abuse Report Line, her failure to heed the Guardian for Children and Young People's repeated warning that children in care are at ongoing risk of sexual exploitation and abuse and to heed her calls for a properly funded community visitor scheme for children in care.

What has happened to this child is so very sad. Reading about the effect on him was heartbreaking. It is past time for this minister to step up and take responsibility, and she can start by indicating that she will take responsibility by explaining to South Australians whether, given her track record, she was even aware of this horrific case, what measures she has put in place to protect children in care and why on earth this has happened again given her repeated assurances earlier this year that measures had been put in place.

As I have said before, and as I will keep saying, if the minister is going to take children into care, her highest responsibility is to keep them safe. Tragically, this is yet another example of her failing to do so.

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