New child protection laws with a focus on safety, set to pass SA parliament

Australia Broadcast Center

3 days ago

The South Australian government has secured enough support from the state's crossbench to pass its proposed new child protection laws, despite warnings from advocates that the reforms risk "sidelining" children.
On Tuesday, Greens MLC Robert Simms and independent MLC Frank Pangallo announced they would support the government's Children and Young People (Safety and Support) Bill, which proposes several reforms to the state's child protection and family support systems.
Their support means the government has enough votes in parliament's upper house to secure the passage of the legislation through parliament.
"This generational reform has been hard, but generational reform is what we should always strive for," Child Protection Minister Katrine Hildyard said.
"Today we have an opportunity to take a really important step forward, a step forward that will make a difference in the lives of children, young people and their families."
The bill has been subject to months of scrutiny, including a parliamentary inquiry, over the government's decision to retain safety as the "paramount consideration" in child protection decision-making.
While the government has argued the clause gives "absolute clarity" to workers when making decisions about whether to remove children, child protection advocates, the state's opposition and some crossbenchers say a child's "best interests" should be the bill's primary focus.
Those in opposition include the state's Guardian for Children, who has previously warned the proposed reforms "risk sidelining children and young people rather than meaningfully engaging them in decisions about their own lives".
Mr Simms said the bill was not "perfect" and it was likely some stakeholders would feel disappointed by the outcome.
"My message to them is not to let the quest for perfection become the enemy of the good," he said.
"Sometimes in politics you have to recognise when you have secured some important outcomes and when a bill is worthy of support, and when the bill is a significant improvement on the status quo.
"That's a circumstance that we find ourselves in today."
According to the government, the bill "elevates" consideration of a child's best interests for child protection decision-making, "empowers" Aboriginal families to lead decision-making about their children, and expands the family group conferencing program.
"This bill is really important because it elevates the voices of children who most need support about the decisions relating to their lives," Ms Hildyard said.
"It strengthens provisions and efforts around reunification when it's safe.
"For the first time ever, it also introduces the very progressive best interest principle to be applied in relation to all decisions about children's lives, about their care, about connection with their family, about how they can participate in community life."
Mr Pangallo said "no deals were brokered with the government" to secure his support.
"Not every piece of legislation that goes through this parliament is perfect and there may well be some issues that arise," he said.
"But what they've built into this bill is a review after a year-and-a-half.
"As it stands at the moment, it is a very good bill and one that will try and achieve the outcomes."