Queensland Releases Domestic Violence Strategy; Adopts All Recommendations From Bryce Report
Thursday 20 August 2015 @ 11.50 a.m. | Crime | Legal Research
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has announced that the Government will adopt all 140 recommendations from a report into family and domestic violence. The “Not Now, Not Ever: Putting an End to Domestic and Family Violence in Queensland” report was commissioned by the Newman government last year and allocated to a special taskforce headed by former governor-general Dame Quentin Bryce.
The taskforce handed down their findings in February, and recommended a series of legal changes including establishing specialised domestic violence courts and instituting a new criminal offence of non-lethal strangulation. Dame Quentin Bryce told the Brisbane Times in March that:
“Alarmingly, women frequently told us that the workings of the law and the justice system only served to further traumatise them… The legal system is complex and it's incredibly overwhelming for vulnerable women. Magistrates, police and lawyers need to do better and the justice system needs an overhaul.”
This week, Ms Palaszczuk told the Brisbane Times that “the Government response would provide the framework for wide-ranging legal, social and cultural change.”
Minister for Women Shannon Fentiman also told the paper that $31.3 million has been allocated to implement the “high-priority” initiatives recommended in the report. The Queensland Government has announced that the key initiatives for 2015-16 will be:
- $6.8M ($19.9M over four years) to establish two 72-hour crisis shelters in Townsville and Brisbane, providing immediate safety for women and their children escaping violence
- contributing $3M towards a national campaign to reduce violence against women and their children
- $0.5M ($2.1M over four years) to establish a Domestic and Family Violence Death Review and Advisory Board to help identify gaps in procedures and systems connected with domestic and family violence related deaths and make recommendations for improvements which could save lives
- $0.7M to develop models for the integrated delivery of domestic and family violence services, working with the domestic and family violence sector to improve outcomes for clients
- $1.1M is provided in 2015-16 to Legal Aid Queensland to expand its domestic violence duty lawyer services (for both applicants and respondents) from one location to 14 locations across the state.
Other changes highlighted by the Government include:
- Changing the Criminal Code to increase criminal penalties for domestic and family violence and treat them as an aggravating factor in sentencing and considering adding the non-fatal strangulation offence
- Pushing for a cultural shift within the police service and appointing Deputy Commissioner (Regional Operations) Brett Pointing as the Champion of Best Practice in prevention and first response
The Queensland Government have also released a draft ten year plan called the “Domestic and Family Violence Prevention Strategy”. The draft was developed following a round of community leader roundtables that took place in June and July 2015. The plan is currently open for community feedback, and submissions close on Monday 16 November 2015.
TimeBase is an independent, privately owned Australian legal publisher specialising in the online delivery of accurate, comprehensive and innovative legislation research tools including LawOne and unique Point-in-Time Products.
