The Allan Government must stop placing any more children in residential care until it can guarantee their safety.
It follows revelations of the alleged life-threatening negligence and criminal activities of a government service provider of residential care.
When a child is removed from their family for their own safety and placed in greater danger under the care of the State, there could be no greater failure of government.
The most vulnerable children in Victoria, living in residential care are being subjected to sexual exploitation and abuse, are being preyed upon and criminalised and go missing to escape their hellish housing conditions.
The recent Public Accounts and Estimates hearings and data released by the Commission for Children and Young People revealed that there were over 400 incidents of sexual abuse between July 2021 and March 2023.
Former Premier Daniel Andrews said there could be no greater betrayal of trust than the abuse of children in state care, yet since Labor came to power more than a decade ago record numbers of children in the state’s care have died and been abused.
Just three weeks ago, Premier Jacinta Allan said in her apology for past care leavers: “To those children who were abused and neglected during their time in care, we humbly and unreservedly apologise.”
Given Labor has changed child protection ministers five times in the last few years, it is no surprise a provider paid by the government to house eight children allegedly faked training qualifications, failed to provide adequate food, and allegedly allowed sexual abuse of the children and living conditions so horrific a child fled more than 275 times in three years to escape.
Shadow Minister for Child Protection, Roma Britnell, said: “The ongoing sexual and other abuse of children under this Government’s care has got to stop immediately.
“I call on the Minister stop placing children in residential care until she can guarantee those children will be safe.
“Failure to take immediate and drastic steps to protect these children in her care, should warrant her dismissal.
“For the Commissioner for Children and Young People to lash the government’s out-of-home care system less than a week after the Premier’s apology, the Premier should take note and do more than apologise, she needs to stop the abuse of children under her watch.”
