Queensland Government Denies Blocking Damning Domestic Violence Report

The Queensland government has denied blocking the public release of a damning report calling for systemic change to help domestic and family violence (DFV) victims.

The report details the findings of a working group, consisting of individuals with lived experience, launched in May last year to identify opportunities for reform.

The report was particularly critical of police responses to DFV incidents, and highlighted a system "marked by fragmentation, inconsistency, and significant procedural and cultural barriers".

"While some individuals encountered empathetic and effective practitioners, most described experiences of institutional structures that were inaccessible, retraumatising, and placed the burden of safety and advocacy on victim-survivors themselves."

A footnote stated a summary of the report had been developed for broader distribution, while noting confidentiality considerations around the group's members.

However, the government did not publicly release the document, which was instead leaked to the media.

Prevention of Domestic and Family Violence Minister Amanda Camm defended the government's actions.

"The report was released exactly as was promised and intended to external agencies in May, so they could begin work on delivering reforms to ensure more women are safer sooner," she said.

Shadow Minister for the Prevention of DFV Shannon Fentiman said it was further evidence Ms Camm was not up to the job.

"It was kept a secret because Minister Amanda Camm wanted to keep it a secret, and it had to be leaked by victim-survivors themselves because they wanted to get the truth out there.

"This minister is fighting to keep this report secret because she wanted to keep it under wraps, because she didn't want to implement those recommendations.

Ms Camm has recently faced intense scrutiny, after the latest state budget had $40 million less funding for the DFV prevention sector than the previous financial year.

Call to hold police accountable

The report highlighted responses to DFV matters were "inconsistent across locations".

"Practices often depended on individual officer attitudes rather than consistent operational approaches," the report states.

"This resulted in the perception that outcomes depended on the officer that attended a matter."

It called for the need for an independent reporting model to better protect DFV victim survivors and hold police accountable.

The state's corruption watchdog recommended establishing a police integrity unit in 2023, but there has been no movement to date.

Victims expected to 'uproot their lives'

A further key concern raised by the working group was the onus on victims to find alternative housing when looking to escape a violent situation.

It highlighted that victims "were the ones expected to uproot their lives to be safe".

"Moving significant distances away from supports and relocating children from schools, friends, and their wellbeing support," it stated.

"More broadly, however, these observations show that a lack of affordable, long-term housing options and financial support available to victim-survivors of DFV exacerbates vulnerability among victim-survivors."

Opposition Leader Steven Miles said the report outlined the impact "the LNP's housing affordability crisis" was having on victims.

It was revealed last week the government would not fund a pilot program designed to provide housing for victims escaping DFV in three south-east Queensland locations.

At the time, Ms Camm did not answer why the Labor-era program would not continue, instead highlighting the government had supported 8,000 people with housing and homelessness services.