A fed-up criminologist and former police officer has furiously lashed out at a panel of politicians for playing politics rather than tackling the violence against women crisis.
Agriculture Minister Murray Watt, Nationals Leader Bridget McKenzie and NSW Opposition Leader Mark Speakman appeared on Monday night’s Q&A episode to discuss the emergency gender violence.
The highly charged episode took a turn when Vincent Hurley, a former detective and criminologist at Macquarie University in New South Wales, lambasted politicians for “arguing amongst themselves” rather than finding solutions.
—That shows that you are overlooking the murder of women here. You’re putting politics above these people behind me. How dare you?’ he said.
Criminologist Vincent Hurley criticized politicians in a Q&A panel Monday night for “arguing among themselves” during a discussion about domestic violence.
Hurley said men with a history of any form of domestic violence should not be granted bail (pictured Q&A host Patricia Karvelas, Minister Murray Watt and Senator Bridget McKenzie)
‘How dare you dedicate yourself to politics, in an environment like this, when a woman is murdered every four days and the only thing you two can do is immediately talk about politics?
‘That’s just embarrassing.
“Is it any wonder frontline services aren’t getting the money they want?”
Hurley said federal spending on frontline services was ridiculous compared to the government’s $300 billion investment in the AUKUS submarine deal.
‘For God’s sake, how long will we have to listen to politicians like you and the rest of you say: “We have to have a royal commission”, “We have to do this”. “Everyone here knows what the answer is,” he continued.
Q&A host Patricia Karvelas asked Mr. Hurley for recommendations.
‘If a man has a history of crimes of violence, any form of domestic violence, coercion, physical, emotional, he should not have the presumption of bail,’ he stated.
‘They should not get bail. Absolutely. There will be people who vehemently disagree about the rule of law, about the rights of individuals, about innocence before the guilty.
‘But what does society want? We want those poor girls in those high schools… One in four of them will probably be sexually assaulted after the age of 15. And you all sit here and pontificate about what we’re doing.’
The criminologist said domestic violence incidents needed to be redefined as “intimate terrorist acts” and called for more funding for frontline services.
‘There is enough legislation there for the police to arrest them. “New South Wales Police has had a pro-arrest policy for at least 30 years,” he said.
And we can’t arrest our way out of this. But for the immediate concern of the women here, they need to get that criminal off the street to give them a break so they can escape to a women’s shelter.
‘Over decades, governments of all stripes, state and federal, have thrown people with mental health problems and drug problems onto the streets, which are the underlying causes of domestic violence.
‘It’s more than just domestic violence. You don’t need a royal commission. “That money needs to go to frontline services…now.”
Daniel Billings, 29, allegedly murdered Molly Ticehurst, 28, at the home they shared in Forbes, 375 kilometers west of Sydney, in the early hours of Monday, April 22.
It comes as pressure mounts on the government to respond to domestic violence that sees 28 women reportedly die at the hands of men in 2024.
Among the cases is Daniel Billings, 29, accused of murdering his ex-girlfriend Molly Ticehurst, 28, on April 22.
Many domestic violence services have argued that a Royal Commission in New South Wales will be too costly and time-consuming as services experience record demand.
The federal government announced Wednesday an investment of $925 million over five years to establish the Leaving Violence Program.
Delia Donovan, chief executive of Domestic Violence NSW, says the funding is insufficient and does not address the immediate crisis.
‘I am frustrated by today’s announcement which does too little to address the current emergency. “Services cannot meet demand, resources are stretched and women are (allegedly) being murdered,” he claimed.
‘Where is the funding for our specialist home and family services? In April of this year, the federal government spent between $4 billion and $5 billion to upgrade a fleet of six submarines.
‘Why don’t women and children see this kind of investment in their safety?’
Domestic Violence NSW has recommended a $145 million investment in domestic and family services to simply meet current demand.
1800RESPECT or 1800 737 732
NSW Domestic Violence Hotline 1800 65 64 63
