On the second anniversary of the Royal Commission into Family Violence, the Andrews Labor Government is stepping up its action on ending family violence with a new prevention agency and advertising campaign blitz.
Premier Daniel Andrews and the Minister for the Prevention of Family Violence Natalie Hutchins today launched the Labor Government’s new family violence prevention organisation, alongside the latest family violence behaviour change campaign, which will soon hit the airwaves.
The new prevention organisation, Respect Victoria, will continue the work to address gender inequality as a root cause of family violence. A statutory authority enshrined in legislation, the new organisation will work to change the attitudes, social norms and culture that lead to family violence and violence against women.
The Government has already provided $12 million for Respect Victoria and it will continue to receive dedicated and sustained funding, to ensure prevention work endures over the long term.
The agency fulfils Recommendation 188 of the Royal Commission into Family Violence, and forms part of the first pillar of the Labor Government’s primary prevention strategy, Free from violence. The organisation will lead on two pillars of the strategy: research and evaluation, and community engagement.
Respect Victoria will also provide expert advice on best practice, and hold quality assurance and accreditation functions. It will engage in whole-of-community campaigns and activities to change the culture that allows family violence to happen in the first place.
The Respect Women: Call it out campaign is the first of its kind and encourages Victorian men to intervene and call out sexism and gender inequality – one of the main drivers of family violence.
The prevention campaign builds on the success of the Labor Governments first behaviour change campaign launched in December 2016, which reached over one in four Victorians.
The advertisements will be on air from today across all major television networks and will appear in regional and metro newspapers, billboards, cinema and online.
This investment is part of the Labor Government’s unprecedented $1.9 billion package announced in the Victorian Budget 2017/18 to address the scourge of family violence – more than the Federal Government or any other state in the nation. This included $50.7 million of dedicated funding to preventing family violence before it occurs.
Quotes attributable to Premier Daniel Andrews
“This agency will go a long way towards ending family violence and will also act as an important reminder to keep working every single day to keep women and children safe.”
“Fiona Richardson fought for this agency to be established and I can think of no better way to mark the Two-Year Anniversary of the Royal Commission and honour her memory than this announcement today.”
Quote attributable to Minister for the Prevention of Family Violence Natalie Hutchins
“This new campaign and the prevention agency are critical to stopping violence before it starts. We know prevention is the only way to reduce the prevalence of family violence and the harm it causes.”
Reviewed 19 August 2020