KING CALLS FOR PUBLIC REDRESS HEARINGS IN BALLARAT
The Joint Select Committee on Implementation of the National Redress Scheme has announced its first round of public hearings, beginning in Melbourne on 19 March 2020.
Federal Member for Ballarat, Catherine King has called for an additional hearing to be held in Ballarat.
“These public hearings are an important opportunity for survivors’ voices to be heard and for improvements to the Redress Scheme to be made,” Ms King said.
“We have always said that the establishment of the National Redress Scheme was never the end of the road, it was the next step in the process towards justice”.
“The Scheme as it was established was not perfect and it did not fulfil all the recommendations of the Royal Commission.”
Recommendations of the Royal Commission that were not included in the Scheme include:
·Lifelong access to counselling and psychological care,
·Compulsory participation in the scheme for states and institutions, and,
·A maximum of $200,000 for redress claims, rather than the $150,000 instituted.
“Ballarat has a strong community of survivors who have been a driving force behind the Royal Commission and the formation of the Redress Scheme. They deserve the opportunity to make their voices heard, and I strongly encourage the Committee to hold public hearings in Ballarat.”
The announced hearing program will see the Committee visit Melbourne, Sydney, Newcastle, Brisbane and Perth throughout March and April. Further details of hearings, including in regional locations, will be available from the Committee’s website when determined by the Committee.
