Legalise Cannabis MP Rachel Payne has welcomed the State Government’s intent to hold churches vicariously liable for child sexual abuse committed by their clergy.
It comes after a High Court ruling last November that the Catholic Church was not liable for abuse by a Ballarat priest.
The court found that the priest was not an ‘employee’, and that it was the job of parliament to rectify this.
In May, Payne had unsuccessfully introduced a bill to hold religious and sports institutions to account for child sexual abuse perpetrated by clergy and volunteers.
It was debated, but was not put to the vote due to a lack of support, she said.
However, weeks later, State Attorney-General Sonya Kilkenny has told ABC that retrospective laws would be introduced by the end of the year.
Payne said she welcomed this news for victim survivors, who were deeply injured because their pain was not acknowledged or recompensed.
“The wait is finally over. Too many people were living in limbo, in anguish and pain,” the South Eastern Metro MP said.
“These people are already up against a legal system that has historically made it unnecessarily difficult to recover compensation from organisations for the child abuse they suffered
“The High Court decision put victim survivors in limbo – with many cases indefinitely halted, unless reforms are made.”
She said Australian Lawyers Alliance and the In Good Faith Foundation (IGFF), which supports victim survivors were calling for action as soon as possible.
“I urge all MPs from every party to support legislation that remove this legal barrier preventing victims of historical child sexual abuse from accessing justice.”
