Allan government postpones key child safety reform in row over disability watchdogs

Laws promising to make Victoria’s childcare system safer have been delayed because the government tied them to other more contentious changes that did not have the votes to pass through parliament.

Minister for Children Lizzie Blandthorn will on Thursday seek to push back debate on an already delayed 450-page child safety bill the government had originally set for an October deadline.

The government has been forced to do so because a more contentious part of the bill, the merging of multiple disability watchdogs, does not have support from the opposition or the crossbench and would have been voted down.

As revealed by The Age last week, disability advocates and unions slammed the government for pushing the “dangerous” and controversial changes to the state’s disability watchdogs under the cover of the more widely supported child protection reforms.

That legislation would have merged three specialist disability sector watchdogs into the new Social Services Regulator, which is also charged with overseeing hundreds of community organisations ranging from family violence and sexual assault to childcare operators, homelessness services and supported residential services.

On Thursday, it was decided the bill would be pulled because Labor was facing the prospect of the opposition, Greens and other crossbenchers teaming up to either split the bill or vote down every clause that related to the disability sector changes.

Two other child safety bills will continue to be debated this week as planned.

The postponed bills include increased powers that would allow unsubstantiated information to trigger the refusal, suspension and revoking of a Working With Children clearance.

They also propose an “interim bar” process that will suspend these clearances for between six and 12 months when information suggests there is a risk to children but this is not yet proven, such as when a complex investigation is under way.

Another key feature of the laws would bring Working with Children clearances, the Reportable Conduct Scheme and the state’s Child Safe Standards under the responsibility of the new super regulator.

Opposition education spokesman Evan Mulholland said crucial reforms to these schemes would be delayed because of “Labor chaos and incompetence”.

The government will argue the move is needed to give MPs and the sector more time to contemplate the bill.

Mulholland said the opposition and the crossbench were given less than 12 hours to form a position on 1159 pages of legislation across all three child safety bills.

“This is a breathtaking contempt for the democratic process that has backfired with devastating consequences,” Mulholland said.

“The Liberals and Nationals want to pass this bill this week, without Labor’s sneaky disability mergers, and will work co-operatively with the government to fix the premier’s legislative mess.”

While the scrapping of Victoria’s existing disability regulators – the Disability Services Commissioner, the Victorian Disability Worker Commission and Disability Worker Registration Board – was first proposed almost two years ago, unions, legal and disability advocacy groups had fought against it.

After being surprised by the merger’s inclusion in the child protection bill when it was introduced to parliament last week, legal and disability advocacy services stepped up opposition this week, saying the axing of existing watchdogs in favour of a super-regulator would weaken safeguards for vulnerable Victorians.

When The Age first revealed the pushback from the sector last week, a government spokesperson said responsibilities were spread across three different agencies, which meant no single body could see the whole picture.

“We’re fixing that by consolidating oversight into one stronger regulator,” they said.

A letter to all upper house MPs signed by the heads of eight disability and support groups across the state called for the Legislative Council to separate the disability amendments from the child protection bill until a review of the Social Services Regulator could take place.

“We believe that the Social Services Regulator does not possess the same depth of specialised knowledge nor the direct connection to disability communities that the Disability Worker Commission has carefully built over the years,” the letter said.

“Further, the Social Services Regulator has a record of poor enforcement, low accountability, and a lower benchmark for the minimum standard of care.”

Opposition disability spokesman Tim Bull said the sector wanted a standalone disability regulator, as outlined by a royal commission.

“Since the laws were introduced, I’ve received a number of emails expressing concern from disability groups that this is not the outcome they asked for from the minister,” he said.

Another letter from Mental Health Legal Centre CEO Charlotte Jones sent to crossbench MPs outlined five case studies of Victorian disability service clients she claimed had already been failed by regulators.

The cases included claims of NDIS clients threatened with eviction and being charged rent for unfit accommodation after they had left, financial exploitation and people with disabilities being coerced into signing financial documents they cannot read.

“People with disabilities deserve protections that are the subject of careful and specific consideration, and they should not just be an afterthought or footnote to other matters,” Jones said.

The Federation of Community Legal Centres also wrote to lobby MPs, claiming the Social Services Regulator did not have the specialised knowledge to protect the disability community, and had a poor record of enforcement and accountability for the areas it already oversees.

There was support for the government proposal from some of the services that would be subject to the new merged regulator, including from Melba Support Services, which wrote to endorse moves for a single regulator.

“This endorsement, however, comes with a caveat. That people with a disability lead the way in this change, and that disability is fully recognised and evenly weighted against other sectors within the social services space,” Melba’s acting CEO Melissa Webster said.

“I would also raise a sensitive topic that some people with disability have raised, and that is the concern about the current operation of the SSR and its output. We need to tread carefully to make sure the SSR’s promise is delivered upon and is resourced appropriately.”

The Morning Edition newsletter is our guide to the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up here.