The Federal Government’s announcement today of a pitiful $2.4 million funding for men’s behaviour change programs to address domestic violence is a drop in the ocean and will not stem the tide of violence against women, the Greens say.
“This pitiful and belated amount shows the Government continuing to ignore women and experts on the scale of action needed to address domestic violence – instead they give Pauline Hanson an inquiry platform to call women liars,” Greens Senate Leader and spokesperson on women, Senator Larissa Waters said today.
“We need an urgent investment of $5.3 billion for a new ten-year billion ³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾ Partnership Agreement on Domestic Violence and Violence Against Women between state and Federal governments.
“Under the plan, perpetrator interventions including men’s behaviour change programs and early intervention programs would receive $128 million over four years.
“We must treat the number of Australians who survive or are killed by domestic violence as the national emergency that it is. No survivor should be turned away when they need help.
“This plan would give 10-year funding certainty for frontline response services and radically boost their funding by investing $2.2 billion over four years over the decade.
“As part of that 10 year funding commitment, we’d support increased, long-term funding for Our Watch and ANROWS (Australia’s ³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾ Research Organisation for Women’s Safety), the national primary prevention and cultural change experts.
“It would also be vital to provide grants directly to domestic violence survivors, helping about 1,000 survivors each month at a time when they need practical support to help re-build their lives.
“There have now been eight women killed by violence in 2020, after 61 were murdered last year.
“This can be the decade where we ensure women and children are safe in their homes, on our streets or wherever they are. But it won’t happen unless we lift our ambition now and resource a comprehensive domestic violence plan,” she said.
