Richard Boyd Barrett urges urgent redress for school abuse survivors

Minister, I've just got off the phone with a lovely man who's in his 70s, Stephen, I just call him Stephen, who's in his 70s, who was absolutely savagely abused when he was nine years old. Well, for quite a while, but when he was nine years old, and it's only recently, now he's in his 70s, been able to sort of acknowledge the damage that was done to him, and he wants to know when this investigation is going to be established so that he can tell his story, and whether people like him, whose life was affected for the rest of his life, and I'll talk a bit more about that, will get an opportunity for redress for the savage abuse they suffered at school. Thank you very much, Deputy, for the question, and first of all, welcome back, great to see you back, and the very, very best, a good look to you in everything. To say that I find the question in front of me and the challenges that are being faced by the survivors as challenging would be an understatement. It is extremely distressing even to read or to study some of the documentation in relation to this. I find it, you know, horrendous to see what is actually, what legacy that has been left and the damage that has been done to the man you call Steve, and not just in his school years, but in his lifetime as well. The Government takes the renovations of the historical sex abuse in schools with the utmost seriousness, and has established a commission of investigation chaired by Judge Michael McGrath to investigate the handling of complaints and the allegations of historical sexual abuse in schools. The commission was the principal recommendation of the report of the Scoping Inquiry into historical sexual abuse in day and boarding schools run by religious orders. The Scoping Inquiry reports also recognises the significance of the issue of redress for survivors, and their express wish that those running schools where sexual abuse occurred should be held accountable financially. It is recommended that consideration be given by Government to establishing a redress scheme for survivors. The high-level interdepartmental group established to advise the Government on the recommendations of the Scoping Inquiry recognises redress as an important element of accountability for survivors. The interdepartmental group recognises that consideration of redress scheme may have far-reaching implications and have advised that further work needs to be undertaken to ensure that the Government is fully informed in any decisions it may take. The interdepartmental group has commenced this walk and is committed to meeting regularly and aims to report to the Department of Education within 18 months. This will not impede the process of the Commission of Investigation, which will begin its walk in parallel. The Commission does not have a role in relation to the redress. Deputy White Barrow. Okay, Minister. I mean, yeah, Stephen was describing to me in really emotive terms the sadistic abuse that he suffered as a nine-year-old boy, and I think before that, where they were just savagely beaten, humiliated, stripped naked and beaten to the extent in his case that he fled school and never learned to read and write. And he was describing in very emotional terms how he's never been able to read to his children bedtime stories, how he imagined it was all his fault, the shame he suffered all his life, that he considered himself to be a dunce and stupid because those were the labels that were associated with him, how his entire life in terms of job opportunities, and he couldn't even admit that he couldn't read and write because he didn't want to say what the reasons were, all of that, right? And he's only been able to come to terms with and go make garter complaints in the very last while. So what he wants to know is when will he get an acknowledgement, an apology from the state that allowed this kind of thing to happen, when will he be able to tell his story? And I worry from what you said that the timelines for these things sound worryingly long because he's in his 70s and, you know, I mean hopefully he's here for quite a bit longer, but people are getting old and they need to know that they're going to have some opportunity to tell their story and get redress soon. All right, I take that point and I suppose, you know, you meet many families and survivors who have suffered enormous trauma, as you outlined, and, you know, horrendous crimes committed against them. And then, you know, people pass on and the family, the next generation carry that challenge with them as well in terms of how their parents maybe have been treated in school as well. It is something that is not just for the victim themselves, but it is also for the family as well. And, you know, in many of the cases that I have been involved with, they have really been challenged in relation to it. I suppose the one thing that I want to give a commitment to is that the interdepartmental group has commenced the work and that work is ongoing at the moment and are meeting very regularly and the report is to be within the department. There's a huge amount of work to be done on it and it has to be meticulously done. It has to be done, you know, correctly, but they are committed to reporting within the 18 months. And I think that is hugely important that that timeline is done. Mr. Minister. Because, as you said, a lot of those survivors are moving on in years and they really want to bring some kind of closure, and I mean that in the greatest possible terms, maybe not full, but some kind of closure to these horrific crimes that were committed against them. Thank you, Minister Deputy Roy Barrett. Yeah, well, Minister, we really need a clear timeline and it needs to happen soon. And I'm also worried that the sort of terms of reference of this investigation may exclude people. I mean, in terms of the type of abuse they suffered. I mean, what I describe to you as absolutely horrendous abuse. Whether it falls within the sort of strict definition of sexual abuse is, you know, debatable, I would say. But it is sadistic, brutal, life-changing abuse. That fundamentally, and I mean, when he was describing it today, you know, at the time, you know, the physical damage that was done to him, the mental damage, and he was expressing concern about his classmates who also suffered the stuff. He doesn't know what happened to them, but he was still worried about what happened to them, the damage that was done to them. It was so savage and brutal. And, you know, what he wants is a clear assurance that soon, and for you or the Government to say soon, that he is going to have an apology, that he is going to have an opportunity to tell his story, and that there will be some redress for the lifelong damage that was done to him because of this sadistic abuse he endured. I give you a commitment that we will work to make sure that the timelines that are set out within the system that they are adhered to, and that a lot of work is ongoing across Government departments in relation to it. But, like, we don't want, you know, and I do appreciate, you know, a lot of times there's commitments given in relation to timelines, for a number of reasons that those timelines aren't met. This cannot be missed. This has to be on time. And we have dealt with over the last 30 or 40 years in terms of renovations and issues in relation to abuse in our school system, and we're still trying to come to terms with, you know, there are still cases that are coming forward, that we've seen in the courts as well recently, but I will, Deputy, make sure that the timelines that we have set out are met, and that they are met, and that, you know, every individual who has suffered within the school system, and there's a lot of work to be done on it, but the documentation that I've given that it will be done within 18 months, and I will work to that timeline as well and report back to the House as soon as possible. Thank you, Minister. And now take other questions. Questions? Thank you.