Thursday, 23 February 2023

Adoption

Matthew BACH (North-Eastern Metropolitan) (17:39): (66) I honestly could not believe my ears when I was listening in to question time in the other place earlier today. The Premier got to his feet and started talking about adoption – adoption of all things. He was talking about how fabulous it is that LGBTI Victorians can adopt children. LGBTI Victorians cannot adopt children. Nobody can adopt children in this state. The latest data from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare shows that in the year 2020–21 exactly 14 children across our state of 7 million people were adopted. This is at a time of an appalling child protection crisis. Record numbers of vulnerable children are dying in the care of the state. There is massive Indigenous over-representation, and this government has done nothing about it.

A member: Shame.

Matthew BACH: Indeed. Indigenous over-representation has increased 63 per cent under Labor. And at the same time, Labor since 1999 has been waging war on adoption, making it harder and harder and harder for children to gain either permanent care or the next step: adoption. We have been talking this week about foster care and the shocking bloody-mindedness of this new minister – the fifth minister I have faced off against in this portfolio, none of whom have seen fit to raise the meagre allowance for foster carers. Well, if you are a permanent carer, the allowance is even less, and permanent care is an essential step on the pathway to adoption. It is just one of the many ways that this government has made adoption impossible for LGBTI people, for other Victorians – it does not matter.

You may not have heard, President, but I was adopted in this state under a Labor government. That Labor government perhaps did not have the best financial track record, but that Labor government cared desperately about vulnerable children and knew that sometimes – sometimes – it is not the best thing for that child to reunify with their family. Normally, that is the best thing, but it is not the best thing in every case. Right now what happens with vulnerable children, far too often vulnerable Indigenous children, is they bounce around from temporary placement to temporary placement, increasing their trauma, brutalising them further. Adoption is simply not an option. The Premier today was perpetrating a cruel hoax on the LGBTI community.

Ingrid Stitt: On a point of order, President, I did not hear who Dr Bach’s question was directed to. I don’t think he said.

Matthew BACH: On the point of order, President, that was directed to the Minister for Child Protection and Family Services, and the action was to seek access to information about how many children were adopted by LGBTI people in the last financial year. I am sure I recall saying that at the outset.