It is an honour to welcome Australian of the Year Rosie Batty to Tasmania as we develop our Government's first Family Violence Action Plan.
Today, Rosie has met and briefed Cabinet and shared her experience of family violence, which have drawn this social ill from behind closed doors and put it firmly on the national agenda.
We have a lot to learn from Rosie’s courage, strength and determination to create change, which have given a voice to many thousands of Australians who have been too afraid to speak out.
Rosie’s remarkable and brave commitment to change attitudes to family violence is inspiring for all.
Rosie also joined a meeting of members of the External Consultative Group, which was established in June to assist, alongside the wider community, in the development of Tasmania’s Family Violence Action Plan.
This was an opportunity to discuss current initiatives addressing family violence across Australia and how family violence can be effectively addressed in Tasmania.
This is a whole of community issue, but as Premier I am personally leading the response of Government, which includes a Family Violence Action Plan to be released this month.
Through the Action Plan we want to ensure that everyone understands that family violence is utterly unacceptable, empower those affected and ensure they have the help and support they need.
It is this Government’s clear intention that additional funding support will be provided to begin implementing the recommendations of the Family Violence Action Plan when that work has been completed.
Few issues are more important than this one, which is why I am leading the whole of government approach to address this appalling social epidemic.