Queensland Government announce taskforce to consult on coercive control legislation

One year on from the brutal murder of Hannah Clarke and her children, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has announced an independent taskforce to consult on coercive control legislation

A TASKFORCE will be convened to consult with family violence survivors and experts as Queensland moves to criminalise coercive control as a form of domestic violence.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk is due to announce which “eminent person” will chair that independent taskforce today at a press conference.

The announcement, to be made with Attorney-General and Domestic Violence Prevention Minister Shannon Fentiman, comes ahead of Friday’s one-year anniversary of the murders of Hannah Clarke and her three children Aaliyah, 6, Laianah, 4, and Trey, 3, who were set alight by Ms Clarke’s ex-husband and the children’s father, Rowan Baxter.

Hannah Clarke and her children.

Ms Clarke’s parents have been behind a concerted push to legislate against coercive control, which was used by Mr Baxter to control his wife.

“Coercive control is a form of non-physical domestic and family violence,” Ms Palaszczuk said on her Facebook account this morning ahead of the announcement.

“It includes behaviours such as controlling what someone wears, limiting access to money, tracking someone’s location, controlling who they see and persistent texting, and it can lead to physical violence.

“We’ve seen legislation against coercive control in places like the UK, and it’s important that we too have legislation in place to better protect victims.”

Ms Fentiman said addressing coercive control was one of her top priorities.

“As we reflect one year on from the tragic deaths of Hannah Clarke and her three children, we know that legislating against coercive control will gear the system towards intervening earlier to better protect victims,” she said.