STATEMENTS BY SENATORS

Senator O'SULLIVAN (Western Australia—Deputy Manager of Opposition Business in the Senate) (13:42): I want to begin my short speech by acknowledging the horrific distress and pain of every child and family affected by the allegations involving childcare worker Hamish Tait. No parent should learn through a newspaper or a Facebook group that their child may have been exposed to an alleged offender, yet that is the reality facing many families across Australia.

Recent childcare abuse cases have exposed serious failures across centres, regulators and screening systems. In some cases, alleged offending was uncovered through online activity or digital devices, not by the safeguards there to protect children. Still, four weeks on, the national leadership families deserve has been missing in action.

Where is the Prime Minister? Where is the education minister, Mr Clare, or the minister responsible for child care in this place, Senator Walsh? Why are families still waiting to hear from them?

Two weeks ago, opposition leader Angus Taylor, Bruce and Denise Morcombe and Childcare Choice wrote to the Prime Minister calling for a publicly accessible national childcare perpetrator register. The principle is simple. When a childcare worker is charged with serious child sexual offences, parents should be able to access their name and relevant employment history from a trusted official source.

A register would not determine guilt; it would preserve the presumption of innocence while giving parents reliable information. A Daily Telegraph poll found that 73 per cent support a transparent public register, and the coalition stands ready to work with the government to establish this. Parents do not want silence.

They want action, they want transparency and they need confidence that their children are safe.