Sexual violence

Sexual violence

Every Australian deserves to live free from violence. The Australian Government is committed to providing national leadership to strengthen sexual assault laws, and to improve criminal justice responses to sexual assault.

2023–24 Budget measures

In the 2023–24 Budget, the Australian Government invested $14.7 million to strengthen the way the criminal justice system responds to sexual assault and to prevent further harm to victims and survivors through the justice process.

This includes $6.5 million for the Attorney-General’s portfolio to work with states and territories to strengthen and harmonise sexual assault and consent laws, and improve criminal justice responses for victims and survivors.

The funding will be used to:

• establish an Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) inquiry into justice responses to sexual violence, with a focus on law reform proposals to strengthen sexual assault laws and improve the outcomes and experiences of victims and survivors in the justice system
• host a ministerial-level roundtable on addressing sexual violence, bringing together victims and survivors, the service and advocacy sectors, other experts and state and territory ministers to drive nationwide, cross-sector collaboration and inform the terms of the ALRC inquiry
• convene a lived-experience Expert Advisory Group to support the ALRC inquiry and advise Government on implementation of its recommendations, ensuring the voices of victims and survivors are centred in justice responses to sexual violence
• drive nationwide efforts to strengthen criminal justice responses to sexual assault, including implementing the Standing Council of Attorneys-General Work Plan to Strengthen Criminal Justice Responses to Sexual Assault 2022-2027.

We will share updates on the ALRC Inquiry, national roundtable and Expert Advisory Group on this website when available.

This work also supports the implementation of the National Plan to End Violence Against Women and Children 2022-2032 and the Standing Council of Attorneys-General Work Plan to Strengthen Criminal Justice Responses to Sexual Assault 2022-2027.

Work Plan to Strengthen Criminal Justice Responses to Sexual Assault 2022–2027

Sexual assault is a serious crime that can have devastating, cumulative and long-lasting effects on the lives of victims and survivors, their families and communities. While states and territories are primarily responsible for laws that criminalise sexual assault, the scale and severity of sexual violence across Australia makes this a nationally significant issue, requiring a nationally coordinated response.

Through the Standing Council of Attorneys-General (SCAG), previously named the Meeting of Attorneys-General, the Australian Government is leading a national discussion on strengthening criminal justice responses to sexual assault.

On 12 August 2022, participants endorsed the Work Plan to Strengthen Criminal Justice Responses to Sexual Assault 2022–2027.

Under the Work Plan, jurisdictions have committed to take collective and individual action to improve the experiences of victims and survivors of sexual assault in the criminal justice system. It focuses on the following priority areas:

1. Strengthening legal frameworks to ensure victims and survivors have improved justice outcomes and protections, wherever necessary and appropriate, across Australia.
2. Building justice sector capability to better support and protect victims and survivors.
3. Supporting research and greater collaboration to identify best practices, and to ensure actions are supported by a sound and robust evidence base.

The Work Plan operates alongside ongoing and prospective initiatives that seek to improve responses to sexual violence that are being progressed at both the national and state and territory level.

This includes:

• the National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children 2022-2032
• the National Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Child Sexual Abuse 2021-2030
• state and territory strategies, laws and policy reforms.

The Work Plan is accompanied by an environmental scan that provides a nation-wide snapshot of key initiatives that directly relate to the Work Plan priorities as well related initiatives across jurisdictions. The environmental scan is a point-in-time resource to illustrate work in progress across Australia, and will be updated on an annual basis.

We will provide SCAG with an annual progress report containing an overview of key activities and progress against initiatives outlined in the Work Plan. We will also publish the report to this website.

Visit the Standing Council of Attorneys-General page for more information, including meeting communiques.

The following initiatives are underway as part of work to implement the Work Plan:

National review of sexual assault and child sexual abuse legislation in Australia

This initiative supports implementation of Priority 1: Legal Frameworks.

In partnership with the Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC), we are progressing a national review and comparative analysis of sexual assault and child sexual abuse legislation across Australia. This will identify the impact of any substantive inconsistencies between legal frameworks, determine whether there are gaps in the conduct criminalised in each jurisdiction, and explore best-practice approaches.

Between March and May 2023, the AIC invited victims and survivors of sexual assault and child sexual abuse to share their experiences with the criminal justice system in Australia.
Submissions to the AIC closed on 31 May 2023.

We expect the review to be finalised in the second half of 2023.

In addition to supporting Priority 1 of the Work Plan, this review also responds to 2021 Australian of the Year Grace Tame's address to the Meeting of Attorneys-General on 12 November 2021.

Specialised and Trauma-informed Legal Services for Victims and Survivors of Sexual Assault

This initiative supports implementation of Priority 2: Justice System Practices, Capabilities, and Supports.

We are piloting 3 legal service delivery models to provide specialised and trauma-informed legal services to victims and survivors, supporting them to participate in the justice system, guided by their own goals in their journey of recovery.