SPEECH BY THE PRIME MINISTER, THE HON P J KEATING MP
ADDRESS TO THE NATIONAL FAMILY SUMMIT, PARLIAMENT
HOUSE, CANBERRA ACT, I11 NOVEMBER 1992
Ita, Summit delegates, fricnds
I appreciate being given the opportunity to deliver the official opening adldress to
this important event.
I know, Ita, that you were motivated to organise this national gathering by your
concern for the social problems you identified as hcing suffc red by many
Australian families today.
I commend your initiativc in gathering together an impressive array of Australians
for this meeting, and trust that these two days will produce fruitful and productive
discussions. I note that you intend to present to me a summary of the Summit proccdings and I
look forward to hearing your thoughts on how wc should all bc rcspoilding to the
changing face of families in Australia today.
For my part, I would like to spend the time available to mc this morning
contributing some of my own thoughts on this challenging subject.
In doing so, I speak as a family mcmber as a husband and a father, as well as a
son and a brother. But T also speak as a member of a Government which has
directed considerable policy effort over the past decade towards addressing the
financial and othcr nccds of familics.
ZO/ TOd 1000N 60: 8 Z6' AON'TI :-1331
I am proud of my own contribution towards many of these policics particularly
those, such as the establishment of the Child Support Agency and the introduction
of the Family Allowance Supplcm nt which have put money into the hands of
women and children who previously went without.
The record of thc Child Support Agency speaks for itself.
Before it was set up in 1988, only 24 per cent of custodial parents received child
support and the average level of maintenance was $ 26 per child per week.
Today the Agency collcts 70 per cent of the amount on its hooks, and the average
level of support is now $ 48 per child per week.
Similarly, the Family Allowance Supplement has put money into the pockets of
those who really need it. The $ 3 per child per week incrca-.; to FAS recipients
provided for in the ' One Nation' package bcnefited 750,000 low income families
who, between them, have 1.5 million children.
Some of thc government's; biggest programs such as Medicare, Family Allowances
and our housing programs are greatly beneficial to families, especially families
with low incomes.
In fact, it is difficult to think of any of our policics in the income support area, the
health area, the housing area, the community services area that do not benefit
families. This is especially true when wc consider the great variety of family forms that exist
in Australia today.
When we talk about Australian families today. we have to include families of all
sorts and sizes.
Familics with children where both parents are present.
Families with children headed by sole parents women or men.
Families that include several generations living uinder the same roof.
Families where one member cares for another who is frail aged, chronically ill,
disabled or suffering from HI V/ AIDS.
I0/ ZO0d TOO'ON 60: 8 Z6' AON* TT13-131
And let's not forget all the other combinations, thc single people, the childless, thc
once-or never-married who live alone, the " enipty-ncstcrs" and all the others who
arc equally entitled to be included whcn we speak of the great family of our nation.
In other words, when it comes to caring for people in need be that need physical,
financial, emotional or spiritual let's not overlook anyone just because they
happen not to live in the kind of traditional arrangements that perhaps once
characterised the majority of households.
At the same time, I think we have to acknowledge that families where children are
present are often those where governments have a special rolc to play in providing
financial and other forms of assistance.
Families with children often have greater financial needs, and it is up to us as a
society to ensure that the next generation is clothed and fed and -; hcltcrcd and
educated. That is thc very least we can do.
Ladies and Gentlemcn.
You are no doubt aware that 1994 has been designated by the United Nations as the
International Year of theFamily.
We see this as a most important year because it will enable us, as a government and
as a community, to draw together our ideas and our thinking about families and
help us frame approaches for the future.
We intend that, as far as Australia is concerned, 1994 IYF will be a year in
which we truly try to come to grips with some of the challenges today's families
face.
To emphasise how seriously we intend to treat JYF let me inform you today of
some of the initial decisions we have already takcn in order to be well prepared.
First, I propose to appoint a Minister Assisting the Prime Minister on the
International Year of the Family and I have already approached the Minister for
Aged, Family and Health Services, my colleague Peter Staples, ahout accepting
this position.
I am delighted that he has agreed to do so.
TOO00N 60: 8 Z6' AON'TT13:-131
Secondly, I have decided to establish an JYF S-cretariat in my department so that I
can bc closely involved in thc Ycar's activities. Part of the role of the Secretariat
will be to support an lYF Council composed of members with a variety of
backgrounds and expertisc who will advise the Government and bc a focus for
IYF. I am very pleased to be ablc to announce today that Jennifer Rowe has accepted the
Government's invitation to be Chair of this Council.
For the past fivc years Jennifer Rowe has been editor of Thc Australian Women's
Wcckly, a position sh~ e will leave next month in ordcr to devote herself to her
writing. Ms. Rowe is well known as thc author of adult mystery books, but shc also
deserves recognition for the six best-selling children's books she has written under
the pen name Emily Rodda. Indeed, four of these books have won thc Australian
Children's Book of the Year Award.
Ms Rowe is vitally interested in all aspects of Australian family life and especially
in the challenges faced by the traditional form of the family in today's inceasingly
complex and difficult world.
Her stewardship of the Women's Wcckl-v has put her in touch, with thousands of
familics and she is very alive to the many issuecs families face in a world that no
longer provides tradition or other forms of certainty.
Ms. Rowe is uniquely qualified to lead the IYF Council and I am very plcased she
has agreed to accept this important post.
Thc Government will give careful consideration to the issues nominated by the IYF
Council to address during the Year, but I should like to say today that I will be a
strong advocate for the inclusion of two vital issues.
Domestic violence is one.
How we go about reconciling work and family is the other.
Les's than a fortnight ago I spoke on the subject of violence against women.
I said then, and let me repeat now, that we as a socicty have an obligation to do
something about the terrible toll of violence against women. I singled out domestic
I0/ VO'd 1000ON 60: 8 Z6' AONvr 1131
violence, saying that we do not know its truc extent, but it is probably greater than
any of us would like to admit.
I say today that I believe we should make the elimination of domestic violence one
of the major aims of the International Year of thc Family.
I don't want to be unrealistic hy setting unreachable goals, but I do believe we can
say that as a society we regard violence within the homc as intolerable and that we
will use the International Year of the Family as our opportunity to take every step
we can to end it.
Womcn and children have the right to safety, the right not to fccl frightened in the
very place whcrc they are entitled to find shclter.
It is surely not too much to ask that wc as a society will strive to make this right a
reality. The second issue I wish to argue for is the reconciling of our work and family lives
for policies and arrangcments on how to make the various aspects of our lives fit
more harmoniously together.
So our lives can become less stressful.
In particular so women's lives can becomc less stressful.
It is women who, these days, are more often the ones who shoulder the " double
burden" of managing the time-tables of family members and who run family
finances in addition to their paid job outside the home.
It is no wonder that many women are just dead tired all the time.
We should be looking for ways to make it easier for them, be they at home all day
with kids or in the paid work-force.
This is an issue on which the government has spoken many times in the past.
I have myself previously advocated that our workplaces become more " familyfriendly".
By this we mean more flexible working arrangements so parents can attend to
children who are sick or need special attcntion. We mean better access to child-
ZO/ SOd 1000ON 60: 8 Z6' AONII : 11331
care, and child-care where the hours arc compatible with parcnts' working days.
We mean leave that enables women and men to spend time with newborn infants.
As a government we are proud of our rccord in child care.
We have increased the number of places five-fold. We have cstablished a fee
relief system which kccps fees down in community and private sector centres for
low and middle income families. And we have introduced nccds-hased planning
to try to ensure that services arc located where they arc most needed.
Since we came to office we have increased the number of subsidised places from
46,000 to 193,000. By mid 1996 we expect to have over 250,000 child care places
available. This is a record to stand on but we intend to do more.
Already we are planning innovations in our approach. For instance, we have begun
piloting special care for sick kids because we know this is one of the greatest
causes of anxiety in parents what do you do if your child is sick and needs to be
looked after?
Thcrc are many other subjects we could include under this issue of how we
reconcile these two important areas of our lives.
You could almost say it is the crux of modern family life.
It will be one of the more challenging aspects of the International Ycar of the
Family, I believe, to come up with practical suggestions for how to make it easier
for all of us but especially those of us with young children to achieve greater
harmony between these two areas of our lives.
Ladies and Gentlemen.
I do not believe it is necessary to wait until 1993, however, to address another issue
which I know is of great concern to parents.
I refer to the subject of violence in the media.
Last wcek in the Parliament I raised the matter of the amount of violence on
tclevision. Following my remarks, I have been in touch with the Federation of
Australian Commercial Television Stations ( FACTS) and I will bc meeting with
Bob Campbell, its Chairman, next week.
TO000N 60: 8 Z6' AON* IT : 131
I look forward to a productive discussion with Mr Campbell, and I am confident
we caii address the legitimatc conicerns many parents have within the selfregulatory
framework to which the government is committed.
But my concern about violence on our screens is not confined to what is aircd on
television. I am also worried about what we see on the big screen when we go to the movies
and what we sec in our homes when we rent videos.
I believe that all us should bc ablc to have confidcnce in thc classifications system
so that we are not taken by surprise by the contents of a film or a vidco.
This is important to us as adults who want to decide what kind of entertainment we
are paying for, but it is quite cr itical when it comes to choosing movies or videos
for our children will watch.
For thc past three years the Office of Film and Literature Classification has
enhanced the classifications by providing consumer advice for all films and videos.
This advice is set out on the bottom of video covers and in display adver tiscmcnts
for films.
This consumer advice is important in assisting parents to try and decide what is
suitable for thcir children to see, but it does not make up for a funidamcntal
weakness in our classification system.
I am referring to the far too broad scope of the classification for films and
videos. The category is absurdly broad.
I find it difficult to accept the utility of a system which brackets " Crocodile
Dundee" and " Cape Fcar" in thc same " IM" category.
I am sure many other parent.-would share my lack of confidence in such a system.
But what can wc realistically do about it?
In the past there have been suggestions that a special category be creatcd just for
films which depict violence.
2-1OLd TOO* ON 60: 8 Z6* AQNTT13:-131
TEL: 8
While this would help to identify violent films, it would ignore the concerns of
many parents in the community about coarse language, or depictions of sex or
drug-use which also feature prominently in the category.
I believe that there should be two levels in the prescnt category.
The first would cover the lower end of the category, would include all films and
videos which contained " milder" material and would like the present " M"
category be advisory only.
The second, which might be called MA, would be restricted rather than advisory
( meaning there would be penalties for allowing children under 15 access to these
films unless accompanied by an adult) and would apply to the
other, more raunchy and more violent end of the spectrum.
At the same time as we were making more sense of these classifications, we might
want to take a look at the recommendation of the formcr Australian Broadcasting
Tribunal for a singlc classification system for television and for films and video.
The present dual system is confusing to all concerned.
I recognise these are difficult issues.
We are not trying to restrict what adults can watch.
But I do think I speak for many parents when I say we need more reliable means of
knowing the contents of films and videos so we can make infornmcd choices about
what our children are subjected to.
In this spirit, I propose to ask my colleagues, the State Premiers and Chief
Ministers, to agree to list film and video classification as an agenda item at the
Council of Australian Govermecnts meeting to be held in Perth on December 7.
I trust they will agree that finding a fair and equitable solution to this subject is in
the interests of us all and is especially in the interests of Australia's children.
Ladies and Gentlemen.
I have great pleasure in declaring this National Family Summit officially open and
I trust the next two days will see you engage in much constructive discussion.
Thank you. T1EL1:. Nov. 92 9: 45 No-005 P. 02/ 02