Page 1077 - Week 04 - Tuesday, 9 May 2023
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personal and professional insights to develop these reforms which will enable lives to be turned around and for our community to be safer. Finally, I thank the officials in both the Justice and Community Safety and the Community Services directorates, who have worked tirelessly to develop both the model and the legislation that is being presented today. I commend the bill to the Assembly.
Debate (on motion by Mr Hanson) adjourned to the next sitting.
Visitor
MR ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Mr Petterson): Members, we are joined today in the gallery by former Attorney-General Gordon Ramsay. It is always a delight to have former members visiting this place. Members, please ensure that he is made welcome.
Sexual Assault Reform Legislation Amendment Bill 2022
Debate resumed from 11 October 2022, on motion by Mr Rattenbury:
That this bill be agreed to in principle.
MS LAWDER (Brindabella) (11.33): It is a pleasure to rise today to speak on the Sexual Assault Reform Legislation Amendment Bill 2022. This bill is a significant piece of legislation. It implements a number of key recommendations from the Listen. Take action to prevent, believe, and heal report. The report is an extremely comprehensive and important body of work.
I thank the members of the Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Steering Committee for their commitment to this process and for producing a report which will be instrumental in shaping policy to support victim-survivors. I would also like to acknowledge the many people who contributed to this report, whether it was by detailing their own personal experiences, those of family or friends, or those that are working in this area. Your courage and strength are to be commended, and I thank each and every one of you.
As many of us in this place would agree, the report was difficult to read. To see the harrowing effects that sexual violence has on all aspects of victim-survivors’ lives is confronting. The report details how many victim-survivors and their families continue to feel disbelieved, disrespected and isolated, despite the best efforts of the tireless workers who have dedicated their lives to helping victims. Sadly, the report showed how too often victim-survivors feel that their needs have failed to be met, and many have expressed being retraumatised rather than supported.
As members in this place, we have an obligation to do better to ensure we have a system where victim-survivors, their families and the dedicated workers in this area feel that they are heard and supported. In this regard, I congratulate the government on this bill—the first tranche of a phased law reform program to implement the law reform recommendations contained in the report.
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