Page 1849 - Week 05 - Thursday, 16 May 2019
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experience that the government holds in their files. In functional families those details would be held by their parents and loved ones. These are memories, file notes and possessions which are taken for granted by most of us but which can be precious for them in a way the rest of us would struggle to understand. They must be supported and encouraged to have their stories heard through this inquiry.
It is my hope that this inquiry to be undertaken by the HACS committee will help instil this confidence. The committee must try to ensure that it makes sensible and achievable recommendations for improvements to the system. These are sensitive and emotive issues. We must also ensure that those who come before the committee and the committee members themselves are appropriately resourced and supported as a result of any trauma experienced by providing or hearing evidence. I understand these provisions were made for the JACS committee previously. Although they were not used in that instance, it is important to have them in place and will be an important consideration for the HACS committee.
I support this motion. I acknowledge and am very grateful for the tripartisan efforts that went into reaching agreement on the best way to proceed in this matter. I thank the officers, Mrs Kikkert and Ms Stephen-Smith. The protection of our children and families in Canberra and the transparency of the care and protection system should not be a party-political issue.
MR MILLIGAN (Yerrabi) (3.41): I thank my colleague Mrs Kikkert for putting forward this important motion. In addition to the state of the child protection system in general, I know this case has shocked and angered Mrs Kikkert as the shadow minister for children, families and youth and, of course, as a mother. Yes, it is a complex case and there are so many factors to it, but for things to have dragged on for so long and for this case to have been overturned by the courts is the symptom of a problem.
I repeat the comments from my colleague Mrs Kikkert that the intent behind this motion is not to point fingers or assign blame—it is to try to fix the causes and prevent this from happening again. I know this case has kept many of us on this side of the chamber awake at night and has made us wonder how things could go so wrong. It has made us think about how many other children, mums, dad and grandparents are going through an ordeal like this. It has made us worry about the long-term impact on the health and wellbeing of those involved. But most of all it has made us even more certain that this government is not up to the task of looking after the most vulnerable in our community.
It being 45 minutes after the commencement of Assembly business, the debate was interrupted in accordance with standing order 77. Ordered that the time allotted to Assembly business be extended by 30 minutes.
MR MILLIGAN: As the shadow minister for Indigenous affairs, I feel it is my duty to advocate in this place for better outcomes for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community. In terms of outcomes, the Productivity Commission’s latest report paints a very bleak picture. It showed that Indigenous children are four times more likely to be reported to child protective services. It showed that Indigenous
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