‘First to sign up’: Peter Dutton backs national action plan on bullying

Federal Opposition Leader Peter Dutton is throwing his weight behind a unified national system to respond to incidents of school bullying ahead of the next election.

Peter Dutton is throwing his weight behind a unified national system to respond to incidents of bullying – declaring ahead of the next federal election he would be “the first to sign up”.

Federal Education Minister Jason Clare also declared the government was “committed to working with states and territories” after state leaders said bullying should be discussed at a national level, including in the national cabinet.

The federal support comes as NSW Education Minister Prue Car announced public, Catholic and private schools will come together to find new guidelines to handle bullying across 3000 NSW schools.

The political push for more action on bullying is in response to The Sunday Telegraph’s investigative documentary Charlotte’s Wish which revealed the harrowing stories of families whose young children were bullied to death by their peers.

WATCH THE CHARLOTTE’S WISH DOCUMENTARY IN THE VIDEO PLAYER ABOVE

Leader of the Opposition Peter Dutton has backed a national action plan to help curb bullying. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Mr Dutton said he was “shocked” that a national standard on combating bullying was not already in place after the Telegraph revealed the disjointed approach to the crisis across Australian schools.

“I’m really shocked that there’s not already a standard in place,” he said.

“I think the prevalence of mental health conditions and the common nature now of bullying and the anonymity of online personas who are vicious in what they’re saying – all of that needs to be addressed.

“We have to be realistic about how much content is out there and how much bullying can destroy lives and cost lives.”

Mr Dutton said he would be “the first one to sign up” to a national approach, adding to a chorus of voices from state and territory leaders who said bullying should be discussed nationally.

“I would fully support any effort as long as it doesn’t water it down to the lowest common denominator and it’s a meaningful, impactful, positive change approach.”

Minister for Education Jason Clare outlined a number of initiatives the government has in place. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Minister Clare said the government had a number of initiatives in place to combat bullying and support for their national bullying action week grew from just 282 schools in 2023 to more than 7000 schools this year.

Bur Mr Clare said “there is more work to do” including the government’s social media ban for children under 16.

“We have also worked with states and territories to ban mobile phones in schools, and we are seeing the difference,“ he said.

“We all know the impact social media is having on children. How it can affect their mental health and their physical health, and how it is used to bully and belittle.

“That’s why we are acting to legislate 16 as the minimum age for access to social media.”

Ms Car said on a state level, the government will work “together to ensure we have the right policies, that we have the right procedures to follow when a student is being bullied.”

The NSW Schools Advisory Council, which represents about 3120 schools across the state, will convene on December 5 to start working on a state-wide approach to address bullying in schools.

NSW Deputy Leader Prue Car speaks during Question Time in the Legislative Assembly at New South Wales Parliament House in Sydney, Picture: NewsWire / Gaye Gerard

Responding to the Telegraph’s two-month investigation into the deaths of children driven to suicide by bullying, Ms Car said: “As a parent … I can’t think of anything that concerns me more than this”.

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Originally published as ‘First to sign up’: Peter Dutton backs national action plan on bullying