Child Protection Minister Katrine Hildyard faces censure over child and young people safety bill

More than 100 crossbench amendments are placing the state government’s new child protection bill at severe risk – and one key minister is facing the wrath of the Upper House.

Minister for Child Protection Katrine Hildyard. Picture Mark Brake

Crossbenchers have filed more than 100 amendments to the state government’s new child protection bill and are likely to back a censure motion calling for Minister Katrine Hildyard’s resignation tomorrow.

The groundswell of Upper House dissent puts the long-discussed bill at risk with the government needing crossbench support to get it passed.

“There’s holes in this bill that you can drive a truck through, that’s why there’s now more than 100 cross bench amendments filed,” Greens MLC Tammy Franks said.

She said vital aspects of the bill attracting the ire of child protection stakeholders included changing rules around the threshold for mandatory reporting from “at risk” to “significant risk”.

This change to the Children and Young People (Safety and Support) Bill, Ms Franks believed, could lead to less reports from teachers, nurses or parents about vulnerable young people.

“We do not want the calls to stop coming in, she wants to turn off the tap rather than actually ensure children are safe,” she said.

On Wednesday, One Nation MLC Sarah Game is expecting to win support in the Upper House for a censure motion calling for Child Protection Minister Katrine Hildyard to resign.

South Australian One Nation politician Sarah Game MLC. Picture: Instagram

Ms Game believed child protection stakeholders were not being heard.

Among more than 55 submissions to a government select committee that included Ms Game was a common call to change the bill from having the “safety” of children as the most important responsibility to a child’s “best interests”.

Stakeholders, including two children’s commissioners and the guardian for children in care, welfare and legal workers, argued the word “safety” first makes workers risk averse.

This, they claimed, could lead to child protection workers over reacting and taking more children into care.

“What’s alarmed me is we’ve had a significant period of time during which the minister has repeatedly refused to take on board the expert advice of stakeholders,” Ms Game said.

“So many of these stakeholders have come to our office to express their grave concerns about this bill – mainly because they haven’t had a fair hearing.”

The law covers all children including those in state care and sets guidelines for social workers making decisions about vulnerable families.

A spokesperson answered questions put to Ms Hildyard, saying the government “has always been open to good faith negotiations on this legislation”.

“The process continues in the legislative council. A censure motion does nothing to further outcomes for vulnerable children.”