NSW Labor has challenged the NSW Government to take up the rest of its historic $158 million package Ending Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence as well as joining Our Watch after the NSW Government announced they will no longer be the only state or territory in the Commonwealth not to belong to Our Watch.
Over the last four years, the Berejiklian Government has consistently refused to join the joint Commonwealth State framework which provides a coordinated ongoing approach to prevention of domestic violence, against the recommendations of the Domestic Violence Death Review Team, the advice of experts and frontline workers in the sector and other states across the Commonwealth.
Shadow Minister for the Prevention of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Jenny Aitchison said the Government had fundamentally failed victims and survivors of domestic, family and sexual violence over the last eight years.
Nearly half of all women killed by domestic and family violence since the beginning of 2019 have come from NSW. According to BOCSAR, the NSW Government has failed to significantly reduce domestic violence over the last 8 years and sexual and indecent assault are the only increasing crime categories on NSW.
Interim Leader Penny Sharpe and Ms Aitchison recently wrote to the Premier and Minister Speakman urging them to rethink the approach to NSW’s participation in Our Watch and seek that the NSW Government take up membership with Our Watch at the earliest opportunity. Ms Aitchison moved a notice of motion in the NSW Parliament on Wednesday again calling on the Government to join Our Watch.
Ms Aitchison said ”Membership of Our Watch is an important and vital step forward in learning from the Commonwealth and other states and territories about how to better prevent violence in NSW, we have so much to do here in NSW.”
Ms Aitchison consulted widely with over fifty communities across the state during the last term of Parliament and met with hundreds of experts and service providers. She said “If the Government is serious about ending domestic, family and sexual violence they should implement Labor’s package, which was well received across the sector and provides a much more wholistic approach to preventing domestic violence.”
“I’ve reached out to Minister Speakman and will be meeting with him in the coming weeks. The Government must listen to the community and work better with the sector if we are to end domestic, family and sexual violence.”
