National plan to tackle violence against women and children

Federal, state and territory governments have agreed to finalise and release a national 10-year plan aimed at ending violence against women and children in October.

Minister for Social Services Amanda Rishworth and Minister for Finance, Women and the Public Service Katy Gallagher at a round table discussion about domestic violence. Picture: The Advertiser/Morgan Sette

Federal, state and territory governments have agreed to finalise and release a national 10-year plan aimed at ending violence against women and children in October.

The outcome followed a Friday meeting in Adelaide in which ministers discussed key issues affecting women including family, domestic and sexual violence, as well as coercive control.

Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth and Minister for Women Katy Gallagher attended for the federal government and also canvassed other priorities, including a national strategy to achieve gender equality.

Ms Rishworth said it was important to ensure all the states and territories were working together, noting that one woman died every 10 days as a result of their current or former partner.

“That is unacceptable,” she said. “The national plan will set out a strategy for the next decade with the aim of reducing that number.”

She also noted that “First Nations women and children are 35 times more likely to be affected by family violence and domestic violence”.

Senator Gallagher said it was a “productive first meeting where governments agreed on the next steps to advance our common priorities of gender equality, and the safety of women and children”.

“We know there is strong community support to end violence against women and finalising the national plan is an important step in making that a reality.”

During the meeting, ministers discussed priorities for the newly established Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence Commission, which will monitor implementation and track progress against targets under the national plan.

States and territories discussed the implementation of gender equality plans and strategies, and welcomed the government’s commitment to a stand-alone national plan for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander family safety.

However, governments also faced calls to address specific issues in the national 10-year plan, including renewed efforts to combat poverty for the one million single parent families in Australia and to provide more affordable housing for people escaping family violence.

Everybody’s Home, which runs a campaign aimed at ensuring all Australians have a safe place to live, said housing needed to be at the forefront of the next national plan.

It argued that at least 7690 women returned to perpetrators after fleeing violence because they had nowhere to go while another 9120 become homeless after fleeing violence.