Women, children and all members of the Tweed community will be made safer as historic and life-saving coercive control reforms passed Parliament yesterday.
Member for Tweed Geoff Provest welcomed the passage of the laws through Parliament.
“Coercive control is a form of domestic abuse that involves patterns of behaviour that have the cumulative effect of denying victim-survivors their autonomy and independence.”
“The new law will make it an offence to carry out repeated abusive behaviours to a current or former intimate partner with the intent to coerce or control, and will carry a sentence of up to seven years in jail,” Mr Provest said.
Minister for Women Bronnie Taylor said the NSW Government stands shoulder to shoulder with victim-survivors and their families, and the families of those whose lives have been tragically taken, in condemning this insidious abuse.
“The NSW Government has acted to ensure the lives of women, children and all members of our community will be made safer,” Mrs Taylor said.
Attorney General Mark Speakman said these landmark reforms are the product of unprecedented consultation, including at least eight rounds of consultation over two and a half years.
“Our extensive consultation has included a public discussion paper in 2020; an extensive parliamentary inquiry by the Joint Select Committee on Coercive Control; a public exposure draft that received almost 200 written submissions; targeted consultations on cabinet in confidence exposure drafts; and almost 30 stakeholder roundtables,” Mr Speakman said.
“This unprecedented engagement has allowed us to make careful adjustments to ensure we have the best possible laws to tackle this form of domestic terrorism.
“Domestic abuse isn’t just about physical violence. Perpetrators of domestic abuse also use physical, sexual, psychological and financial abuse to hurt and control their ‘loved one’. Sadly, this behaviour is a known precursor to domestic violence deaths.”
“These reforms will drive societal change to make sure we protect our most vulnerable and provide an avenue to justice for those who need it most, ” Mr Speakman said.
There will be an extensive implementation period of at least 14 months and up to 19
months before the laws commence, to allow plenty of time for training, resourcing, education and raising community awareness.
The NSW Government has committed an additional $69.6 million in this year’s Budget for services that support victim-survivors of domestic and family violence, and minimise the trauma experienced during legal proceedings.