Legal reforms to help victims of sex assaults

Minister for Women Katy Gallagher has laid the groundwork to reform the justice system so it is fairer to sexual assault victims.

Minister for Women Katy Gallagher. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

Minister for Women Katy Gallagher has laid the groundwork to reform the justice system so it is fairer to sex assault victims, warning it is skewed against women and the commonwealth has a duty to act.

She also flagged bolstering the codes of conduct for federal MPs to improve ­behaviour at Senate estimates to prevent personal ­attacks on women.

Momentum for overhauling the justice system has been building after the retrial of a man ­accused of raping former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins was dropped.

Senator Gallagher, who was careful not to reference any specific sexual assault cases, said Australia had a problem with gender equality and the real challenge was working out how to shift the dial. During the speech in Melbourne on Wednesday night, she also noted just 1.5 per cent of sex assaults resulted in a conviction.

“If we continue to see women re-traumatised by simply trying to seek justice the hard work to empower women to report cases will be lost,” Senator Gallagher, who is also Finance Minister, said.

“The right to a fair trial is fundamental – as is the presumption of innocence – there’s no argument there. But it is a problem if we are operating in an environment that re-traumatises plaintiffs, victims-survivors and claimants.

“We have a duty to look at our systems and processes. To understand where and why people who may access those systems see them as a deterrent to seeking justice. We have a responsibility to ensure that women feel comfortable and supported to report any act of violence against them. We are clearly not there yet.”

Acknowledging the Albanese government would need help to make changes, Senator Gallagher said Labor would enlist the policy levers and support of the states, private sector, union movement, frontline workers, and the ­researchers and academics who understood the drivers of gender imbalance.

While she said there had been progress in implementing the recommendations of Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins’ Respect@Work report, Senator Gallagher cautioned there was still much more to be done before reaching an “exemplar status”.

She gave the example of Senate estimates, saying she saw it being used as a platform to pursue political campaigns and personal attacks that targeted individuals who were “often women outside the parliament”.

The Australian understands Senator Gallagher was referring to questioning by the Coalition of ABC journalists Louise Milligan and Patricia Karvelas in the latest round of estimates hearings.

“While estimates is a robust forum – believe me I’ve had plenty of robust exchanges there – our behaviour as leaders and standard setters is public and on the record for all to see,” she said. “We hold privileged and powerful positions. And with that should come great responsibility and the highest levels of personal conduct about how we choose to use that power. Perhaps the codes of conduct for MPs and senators will change and improve some of this behaviour. If not, it’s something the Senate should examine.”

Earlier Senator Gallagher vowed to lead reform of the justice system and the experience of sex assault victims.