Thursday, 20 November 2025

 John BERGER (Southern Metropolitan) (22:36): (2166) My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Prevention of Family Violence in the other place. I was glad to see that the Attorney-General had introduced legislation into Parliament to strengthen laws against family violence, introducing a two-year minimum term for all family violence intervention orders, ensuring that children listed on a parent’s FVIO continue to be protected when they turn 18; widening the definition of family violence to recognise more forms of abuse; allowing protective orders for behaviour that has happened interstate; and reshaping the stalking offence for better applications by the courts. These changes better protect women and children escaping from family violence and are informed by the insights and lived experiences of victim-survivors.

In my electorate of Southern Metro Region Relationships Australia Victoria maintains a centre in Kew. They are a community-based not-for-profit organisation with no religious affiliations, and in their Kew location they offer counselling services, family dispute resolution through mediation, group programs for people impacted by family violence and programs for men who inflict family violence. It is a vital resource for families impacted by domestic violence in the Southern Metropolitan Region, offering direct support to victim-survivors and intervention strategies towards perpetrators. The action that I seek from the Minister for Prevention of Family Violence is to visit Relationships Australia Victoria’s Kew centre with me to learn more about the work they are doing to support families impacted by family violence in the Southern Metropolitan Region.