E&OE TRANSCRIPT
Topics: MyAus App; IV fluids; Energy; Melbourne refugee rally; Child protection; National Plan to End Violence Against Women and Children; Family, domestic and sexual violence; Missing and murdered First Nations women.
AMANDA RISHWORTH, MINISTER FOR SOCIAL SERVICES: Today, I'm very pleased to announce that expanded information to support women seeking information about family and domestic violence is now available on the MyAus App. MyAus is a very important resource for those from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds and more recent arrivals. This is where people can get information about how to navigate Australia, some of the service systems and how to get support. And up until now, there hasn't been really dedicated information about how to get support for family and domestic violence. So I am so pleased that the Australian Government has integrated very useful information in 20 different languages on how to get support around safety and relationships. This will have a range of information about what is family and domestic violence in the Australian context, how to identify and how to reach out for help. This is a really important addition and builds on the work we've been doing to provide more support and more information in more different ways so that women can get support for family and domestic violence. Just recently, we also launched for 1800RESPECT the ability to do video conferencing. This is a really important alternative channel that people can use to get support and advice, and before that, we introduced SMS so that someone that may be in a position where they can't talk, can SMS 1800RESPECT to get the advice and support they need. We've made the Leaving Violence Program permanent. What we've learned from that is many women are self-referring to that program – 80 per cent – and that program is providing vital support, but importantly, vital information about the type of risk that they may be unaware that they're experiencing, and we extended that program, of course, to all women in Australia facing family and domestic violence. This has been a really significant investment, but this announcement today to ensure that in 20 different languages on the MyAus App, people can get appropriate information so they can understand the laws in Australia, but importantly, know where to get help. Now I’ll just make some comments also about Gallipoli. Obviously, Gallipoli and the Gallipoli Peninsula is a place of great importance to Australia. It is a sacred site to both Australia and Türkiye with so many of our young men buried on that peninsula, and so the overnight reports around fires have been very distressing for many people. It is our understanding that the fires are now under control. However, the extent of the damage has not been established yet, so we will work very closely and quickly to establish what damage, if any, has occurred to Australian graves, and go through the process of ensuring work is done to restore if any damage has been done.
JOURNALIST: Just on the development for the App. How will you be ensuring that those people that you're trying to target for these additional languages know where to go to get that information?
AMANDA RISHWORTH: The updates to the App have been designed with people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, refugee advocates and other migrant services. So it's been designed in partnership to ensure that it is appropriately and culturally responsive. This App is already available and has been designed to ensure that whether people are new arrivals, or they come from a culturally, linguistically diverse background, they are able to access and navigate this information. So adding the information about family, domestic and sexual violence and the laws here in Australia and where to get help have been incorporated, in consultation with those from migrant backgrounds.
JOURNALIST: What extent are people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds impacted by domestic violence?
AMANDA RISHWORTH: I think it's clear that domestic, family and sexual violence impacts people right across Australia. What our National Plan showed for a variety of reasons, is people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds might face more barriers to accessing help and seeking help when it comes to family and domestic violence. It’s been an area that we've been very focused on in the National Plan and one of the programs, in addition to the announcement today, that we've launched, is in fact, an education and training program for faith leaders. We know a lot of people when they may be having issues in their relationship, may turn to their faith leader for support. We want to ensure that those faith leaders have the expertise and the knowledge to support that couple or that relationship. So we've been working in a variety of ways, but there is no doubt that women from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds can find more barriers to seeking support and help and we want to reduce those barriers.
JOURNALIST: There’s been a huge increase in the number of Australians accessing hardship programs because they can't afford their power bills. Is the Government to blame for the surge in prices, as the Coalition has suggested today?
AMANDA RISHWORTH: We know Australians are doing it tough when it comes to cost of living and we've been very focused on reducing cost of living pressures where we can. Of course, when it comes to energy, when we came to Government, our first focus was putting in a plan, a reliable renewable energy plan to attract investment to increase energy generation and drive down energy prices. And we are seeing wholesale prices coming down compared to when the Liberal Party were in office. Now we've got to keep working at that and making sure that we see more supply and investment, supply being attracted to the market. The risk to that plan is the Liberal Party's reckless nuclear program plan, which would put investment on hold, wouldn't deliver energy even if they were able to build it in 20 years, would risk blackouts and actually generate the most expensive form of energy in the world. This is the alternative plan. I'm not going to take lectures from the Coalition who have an absolute, risky, unworkable plan for energy. We're going to get on with the job. In the short term, we are supporting families with this cost of living pressure through a $300 rebate to every household to support them with the cost of energy. But our medium to long term plan is to make sure that we're getting investment into general, into energy generation with our reliable renewables plan.
JOURNALIST: The energy rebates as you just mentioned, are a short-term solution. The Coalition claims that your renewables only policy is only going to drive prices up. How can you really ensure that prices are going to come down in the long term?
AMANDA RISHWORTH: Well, this is just rhetoric from the Coalition and not backed up by evidence. I would say renewables are a key source of the cheapest possible energy generation. Compare that to nuclear, which, in 20 years’ time, we may get an increase, we may get an increase in energy that is the most expensive in the world. There’s just no evidence. They can spout off all the rhetoric they like. They need to back it up with evidence. We know that renewable energy is the cheapest form of energy. It's obviously backed up by things like battery storage and gas, which is key to the future of our energy market. It is just not right to mislead the Australian people around what is the right path for Australia. We are investing, at the moment, in making sure that we have a plan. We are attracting private investment as well, and we'll keep doing what the evidence demonstrates drives down prices of energy.
JOURNALIST: There's been reports that neo-Nazis have crashed a refugee rally at the Home Affairs Office in Melbourne. What's your reaction to that? And do you think that Peter Dutton's comments about visas in recent days is only inflaming the situation and doing less to support social cohesion?
AMANDA RISHWORTH: I would say that any violence in this country is unacceptable. We have the ability for peaceful protest, but we have no tolerance for violence in this country. But what I would say to Peter Dutton in particular, is he needs to listen to the ASIO Director-General's words. Mike Burgess has not minced his words. He's been very clear that political leaders have to play a role in bringing down the temperature in this country by not inflaming the situation. What Peter Dutton does at every opportunity is seek to divide our country and cause division with his negativity. I would urge Peter Dutton to listen to Mike Burgess, the ASIO Director-General. We all have a responsibility to play. We all have a responsibility to bring people together. Our country needs to be united, and we need political leaders that will actually demonstrate that.
JOURNALIST: The shortage of IV fluid. Is the Government considering introducing additional measures to take pressure off doctors and secure safety?
AMANDA RISHWORTH: The Health Ministers across the country met yesterday to discuss the issues around the global shortage of IV fluids. They put a cross-jurisdictional working group together to make sure that demand is being managed and that there is good communication. Obviously, the TGA has approved other sources of IV fluids. So what I want to do is reassure the Australian people that health services have not been affected and across jurisdictions, the Commonwealth, along with states and territories, are working to manage what is a global shortage because of a variety of reasons and we'll do it in a very coordinated and connected way.
JOURNALIST: Is there anything stopping Australia from being able to manufacture here onshore?
AMANDA RISHWORTH: What the Health Ministers will be doing is looking at how we make sure that there is ongoing supply and distribution across the country and making sure that we're working all together. As I said, the TGA has looked at other sources, and we'll continue along with our state and territory governments, to look at how we best manage this situation. But I do want to emphasise and reassure the Australian people that there has been no disruption to health services, and all jurisdictions are working very collaboratively together to manage this issue.
JOURNALIST: How? This issue could last at least to the end of the year?
AMANDA RISHWORTH: There’s expected to be ongoing disruption for the coming months. But as I said, what the Health Ministers have done is set up a cross-jurisdictional working group to manage this situation across Australia. Obviously, the TGA has acted to ensure that there's other sources of IV fluid, and we will continue to all work together or across governments to ensure that the Australian people are not affected.
JOURNALIST: There's been concerns raised here recently in reviews about the way in which you want to remove child protection authorities from public hospitals. Are you looking at this issue at a national level to see if there are also issues in other states and territories?
AMANDA RISHWORTH: Child protection and the removal of children is a statutory responsibility of states and territories. We all work together under the Safe and Supported Framework when it comes to child protection issues, but ultimately, the decisions of child protection and any child removals are a matter for states and territories.
JOURNALIST: It's the one year anniversary for the National Plan Action Plans. How is Australia tracking on the targets to end violence against women and children?
AMANDA RISHWORTH: Since I've been Minister, one of my key priorities has been around bringing the National Plan into fruition to work with victim-survivors and those affected by family and domestic violence, along with states and territories. What we've seen from the Commonwealth perspective since those Action Plans have been released and since the National Plan has been in place is 85 different initiatives to support women and children fleeing domestic, family and sexual violence. But not just in response to that, to try and invest in prevention, early intervention and healing and recovery. This is a difficult issue. This is an issue that has been with us for decades. It's going to take some time, but I believe through focusing our investment with states and territories, through the National Plan, through our Action Plans, we're investing in the things that will turn this issue around, and we'll keep working to make sure that we're able to keep women and children safe in this country.
JOURNALIST: We saw the extremes of violence in multicultural communities this week when a woman allegedly murdered her daughter on the Gold Coast. What progress has been made, specifically with regards to support for children, where information alone isn't enough to prevent violence?
AMANDA RISHWORTH: I'm not able to comment on any individual case that is before the courts. I would say, though, that what we saw in that circumstance is deeply distressing for so many people when it comes to supporting children. Obviously, states and territories have a very important role in the child protection system to ensure that children are kept safe. But also, of course, through our National Plan to End Violence Against Women and Children, we have elevated responding to children in their own right. We’ve been working to ensure that there's not only information available for children, but there are programs for children that may have experienced family and domestic violence and how we better support them. We'll keep working with our state and territory colleagues on the issue of supporting or investing in and supporting in programs that support children affected by family and domestic violence, but they have been elevated in this National Plan.
JOURNALIST: Indigenous women have slammed the findings of the inquiry into murdered and missing women and for not significantly reforming the way we gather data on victims, have First Nations women been let down?
AMANDA RISHWORTH: Firstly, I'd like to thank every single person that provided evidence to the inquiry on missing and murdered First Nations women. This was a really significant inquiry and has wide ranging recommendations that the Government will consider. When it comes to missing and murdered First Nations women the National Cabinet that was held primarily focused on domestic and family violence and made a commitment to continue the efforts to reduce or to address missing and murdered First Nations women and from that National Cabinet, I understand that Ministers have been working together to talk about how they can share information across jurisdictions. This is an issue that the Government is taking incredibly seriously. We know that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women are disproportionately affected by family, domestic and sexual violence, and we will keep working to look at what are the solutions in partnership with First Nations people. Thank you.