AUSTRALIA
The Canberra Times
February 15, 2016
Tom McIlroy
Legislative Assembly reporter at The Canberra Times
The ACT government will move to create a new independent authority to oversee legal reporting requirements for child abuse and neglect, ahead of the completion of the royal commission.
Under the plan put forward by Chief Minister Andrew Barr, organisations with responsibility for children will be legally required to report any allegations of abuse or neglect to a new statutory authority. The move is designed to end internal reporting and handling mechanisms, previously used by churches and other organisations seeking to handle abuse allegations outside legal structures.
The scheme would be based on systems already in place in NSW, which the government believes would bring effective reporting requirements to the territory and complement measures already in place in the ACT.
The proposed scheme would to increase statutory responsibility by creating a new independent oversight body armed with powers to provide further protection for children and young people.
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