Madam Speaker, I am grateful for the opportunity to resume the debate on this important legislation, which the Canberra Liberals will be supporting. The Reportable Conduct Scheme for the ACT, which commenced on 1 July 2017, received unanimous support when it was introduced. There can be no doubt that every single member of this Assembly views the safety and protection of our children and young people as of great importance. This bill seeks to amend the Children and Young Peop

Thank you, Madam Speaker. There are many wonderful people I have come to know and respect during my time as a member of the Legislative Assembly – so many individuals and groups of people who embody what I would call a love for the things that God loves. I have witnessed charities full of good-hearted volunteers providing for our territory’s needy and vulnerable. I have witnessed dedicated people who deliver programs that provide assistance to the weak and the afflicted. I ha

Madam Speaker, I stand to speak in support of the foreshadowed amendments moved by Mrs Jones. Along with the rest of the Canberra Liberals, I welcome greater oversight of our correctional facilities in the ACT, including Bimberi Youth Justice Centre, which, as we all understand, has its own troubled history. The recommendation for the creation of this inspectorate arose out of a tragedy: the death of man who was in the custody of this Government. As Mrs Jones has already note

Last week’s episode on ABC’s Four Corners, titled ‘Broken Homes’, raises troubling issues surrounding out-of-home residential care for vulnerable children, both across Australia and in the ACT. The investigation highlighted the shift of foster care to the private sector over the past 20 years and reported numerous instances of sexual abuse and neglect in the system, said Elizabeth Kikkert, Shadow Minister for Families, Youth and Community Services. “Under new arrangements imp

Young people in Canberra are invited to investigate and creatively express their family and cultural heritage in the Back to Your Roots 2017-18 writing competition launched on the weekend by Canberra Liberals Youth and Multicultural Affairs spokeswoman Elizabeth Kikkert. Back to Your Roots 2017-18 is a competition that encourages young people to express their cultural heritage in a creative piece of writing such as a poem, song, story, comic, script or essay. “In my culture,

Thank you, Madam Speaker. The Ginninderra District Girl Guides operate from the Guide Hall located in Walhallow Street in Hawker, and the district serves guides from the suburbs of Aranda, Belconnen, Bruce, Cook, Hawker, Higgins, Holt, Macquarie, Page, Scullin and Weetangera – all located in my electorate of Ginninderra. This Guides Hall is a simple building that is in desperate needs of its own car park, but for the many young women in this area who have enjoyed their associ