Victorian child protection cases to consider past Aboriginal mistreatment under landmark bill

Victorian judges and child protection workers will have to consider the past mistreatment of Aboriginal families when dealing with cases involving Indigenous children, under an Australian-first bill to be introduced to parliament.

The children and health legislation amendment (statement of recognition, Aboriginal self-determination and other matters) bill will be introduced to parliament on Tuesday after it lapsed last year due to the state election.

The bill had the support of the Coalition and the Greens at the time, meaning the new iteration will probably pass parliament in the coming weeks.

Under the proposed law, organisations such as the Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency will be empowered to investigate child protection cases and connect families with support before a court order is made.

It is hoped this early intervention and culturally grounded support will reduce the number of Aboriginal children entering care in Victoria.

The chief executive of the Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency, Muriel Bamblett, welcomed the reintroduction of the bill.

According to the latest figures, one in nine Aboriginal babies aged under one are taken from their parents by the state in Victoria, more than double the national average. In all, one in 10 Aboriginal youth are in care, and one in three are known to child protection services.

A 2019 report commissioned by the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing found 56% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children were placed with a non-Aboriginal carer, while more than half were separated from their siblings.

It is believed the government did not want to debate the bill after the Greens introduced an amendment to raise the age of criminal responsibility to 14. Andrews has since indicated he is willing to abandon a national process to raise the age and go it alone.

A separate Greens bill to raise the age will also be debated in parliament on Wednesday but will unlikely go to a vote until the next sitting week.