Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2026-2027

Ms ROWLAND (Greenway—Attorney-General) (17:13): I thank all honourable members for their contribution to this debate, and I do want to thank the member for Jagajaga for her comments relating to the government's priorities on women's safety and acknowledge her longstanding advocacy in this area. The government is committed to ending the scourge of family, domestic and sexual violence, which has such devastating impacts on individuals, families and communities.

Tragically, at least 21 women and children have already been killed this year through intimate partner violence or domestic violence. Addressing this requires sustained, evidence based action, and that is exactly what the Albanese government is doing. In my portfolio, that includes investing in police capability through a world-leading $4.1 million national training package that's now available across all jurisdictions.

This cutting edge training uses real-life case studies with immersive virtual reality to help improve responses to domestic violence, coercive control, technology facilitated abuse, trauma and misidentification. More than 10,000 frontline police officers are expected to undertake the training. Last year, the government piloted specialised, trauma informed sexual violence legal services in three jurisdictions.

Following their success, we've now completed the rollout nationally. This helps ensure victim- survivors in every jurisdiction can access stronger support to navigate the justice system. We also continue to support the Family Violence and Cross-examination of Parties Scheme, with almost $36 million allocated since 2025 to ensure that victim-survivors are not directly cross-examined by perpetrators in family law proceedings.

Combined with the Albanese government's significant reforms to the Family Law Act, these measures form part of a broader, ongoing commitment to ending this violence. Through the National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children, the Albanese government has also committed $4.4 billion to help prevent violence and reduce intimate-partner homicide. I'm mindful of time, but I mention that, in my portfolio, this includes $28.6 million to pilot new policing models targeting high risk offenders, $50.6 million to improve information sharing and $6.8 million to support children after separation.

These are significant investments, but there is so much more to do. In this budget we've provided essential funding across the portfolio to strengthen institutions, uphold the rule of law, address gender based violence and help keep vulnerable Australians safe. Whilst time does not permit me to conduct an exposition of every measure, there are a few I'd like to highlight, including $37.3 million over two years to strengthen the capacity of the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions; $74.2 million to strengthen the integrity of the migration system, including investments in the Federal Court and the Federal Circuit and Family Court to improve efficiency, and a duty lawyer pilot to support access to justice; $10.8 million over four years and $2.7 million ongoing to support the Australian Law Reform Commission; and $27 million over four years and $5.7 million ongoing to the OAIC to strengthen privacy regulation and oversight across digital initiatives.

This budget reflects the clear priorities of the government in my portfolio. It strengthens institutions, while delivering practical protections that keep Australians safe. Proposed expenditure agreed to.