National Redress Scheme for Institutional Child Sexual Abuse Bill 2018
The submission to the Senate Community Affairs Legislation Committee in relation to the proposed measures contained in the National Redress Scheme for Institutional Child Sexual Abuse Bill 2018 (the Bill) was prepared by the Law Council.
The Bill seeks to give effect to the recommendations of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sex Abuse (Royal Commission) by establishing a national redress scheme for survivors of child sexual abuse (the Scheme).
The Law Council has long supported the establishment of a national redress scheme for survivors of institutional child sexual abuse and welcomes the introduction of legislative measures to give effect to the Scheme, as well as the statement from the Prime Minister that a national apology will be issued to survivors by the end of the 2018. It is also pleasing to see recent announcements indicating that there is now a majority of states and territories that have opted into the Scheme, together with the Commonwealth and a range of prominent non-government institutions.
The Committee will be aware that on 12 February 2018, the Law Council provided a comprehensive submission in relation to the initial legislative proposals contained in the Commonwealth Redress Scheme for Institutional Child Sexual Abuse Bill 2017 (the 2017 Bill). The Law Council refers to this submission on a number of matters that remain outstanding.
You can read the full submission below.