Ms JENNY AITCHISON (Maitland—Minister for Regional Transport and Roads) (21:43): Maitland consistently has one of the highest rates of domestic violence in New South Wales. Over the past nine years as a member of this place, I have been a strong advocate on the issue. I am incredibly pleased that the Government has responded to the crisis statistics, which are increasing so quickly. Previously, a woman in Australia died from domestic violence every 10 days. That has changed to one woman every four days. That is unacceptable. A single death caused by domestic violence is one too many. The current level of violence across regional New South Wales and all electorates is unacceptable.
The New South Wales Government has provided an emergency package of $230 million over four years as part of its response to the crisis. I am incredibly proud to be part of a government that is working to deliver change. The rate of violence in our homes is impacting not only women and men but also children. We need to stop the violence now, before it becomes an intergenerational problem. The Government has announced the implementation of the first primary prevention strategy. That is so important. The core values need to be respect, kindness and compassion. We need to see women and men as equal. People cannot assume they can behave in a certain way to assert their power over someone else, whether it is through coercive control or other more violent means.
The Government will undertake further long-term reforms to prevent domestic, sexual and family violence. Future reforms will be informed by the lived experience of victim-survivors and experts. The other day in the Cabinet meeting we received a briefing from the Women's Safety Commissioner, Hannah Tonkin, along with Rosie Batty, Marcia Neave and Christine Robinson. We got an overview from the sector of the issues at play and some of the crisis response we need to undertake. They also talked about the long-term preventative space. It is about improving the community for everyone who lives here.
The $48 million to roll out the Staying Home Leaving Violence program statewide is so vital. There are women in New South Wales who cannot leave their homes to escape violence. It is not safe for them to leave and it is not safe for them to stay. It is so important to roll out that program, particularly in regional areas. As the member for Barwon pointed out, the lack of housing in many regional areas isolates women and their children. The Integrated Domestic and Family Violence Services Program will provide important case management. Women who have lived through this situation know it is about not only escaping the violence but also rebuilding their lives. The Integrated Domestic and Family Violence Service Program will assist people to navigate the services of government agencies and non-government organisations. The program will help them coordinate contacts across police, the courts, health care, child protection, housing providers and refuges. The service will work with survivors who have already left relationships and those who remain. We know that leaving is the most dangerous time in a relationship.
There will also be a focus on improving the justice system for victims, with $45 million set aside to improve bail laws. We do not want a knee-jerk response that could lead to more women being killed. We do not want poor responses; we need trauma-informed responses. There is $24 million for specialist domestic violence workers within the justice system and $2 million over four years to support the Domestic Violence Death Review Team. Those reviews give such important insight into what happens in relationships where things go so horribly wrong that someone ends up dying. There is $2.1 million over two years to improve and continue the Corrective Services EQUIPS Domestic and Family Violence program. The program is delivered to offenders in custody and under supervision in the community to prevent reoffending.
Funding for early intervention includes $48 million to secure and increase funding for workers who support children accompanying their mothers to refuges and $700,000 for the Domestic Violence Line. There is $38 million for the implementation of the first dedicated primary prevention strategy, which is really important work. I give a shout‑out to all the services in my electorate that do such amazing work to keep women and children safe in our communities.
