MEDIA RELEASE

NICK XENOPHON M.L.C.

INDEPENDENT NO POKIES MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

7 April 2005

LAW TO REQUIRE PRIESTS TO REPORT CHILD ABUSE PASSES FIRST HURDLE

A move to require priests, church workers and volunteers (as well as recreational service workers and volunteers) to become mandatory notifiers of knowledge of child abuse passed the Upper House last night – despite opposition from the Government.

The legislation, the Children’s Protection (Mandatory Reporting) Amendment Bill 2003, was first introduced by No Pokies MLC Nick Xenophon in September 2003 and will now go to the Lower House for debate.

The measure passed was first recommended by the Layton Report into Child Protection – released in March 2003. The Xenophon Bill controversially went a step further than the Layton Report, as it sought to take away the recommended exemption for mandatory reporting of information about child abuse revealed in the confessional.

An amendment to the Bill moved by Shadow Attorney-General Robert Lawson that reinstated the exemption recommended by the Layton Report was successful.

Mr Xenophon said he was “gob-smacked” by the Government’s approach to the Bill.

“In September 2003, then Social Justice Minister Steph Key said the Government intended to introduce its own laws within months. In June 2004 Police Minister Kevin Foley announced in Parliament, following the report of the inquiry into the handling of sex abuse claims within the Anglican Church said the Government would ‘urgently introduce legislation extending mandatory reporting requirements to staff and volunteers of church and other religious organisations.’” (Hansard 2/6/04, page 2388)

“Incredibly, 25 months after the Layton Report, 18 months after Steph Key’s statement, and 10 months after ‘urgent’ action being foreshadowed by the Police Minister, the Government still hasn’t acted. Passing the Bill in the Upper House last night should hopefully jolt the Government into action.”

Mr Xenophon said the Government’s excuses that they were still working on a ‘better’ version of the Bill and still consulting with churches just “didn’t wash”.

He also said that whilst he was “disappointed” the confessional was exempted, the alternative was for the Bill to fail in the Upper House, and the measure was still a “dramatic improvement” to require notification of child abuse.

Written and authorised by Nick Xenophon, 653 Lower North East Road, Paradise, SA 5075