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House of Assembly Wednesday 11 November 2020 PARLIAMENT OF TASMANIA HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY REPORT OF DEBATES Wednesday 11 November 2020 REVISED EDITION Wednesday 11 November 2020 The Speaker, Ms Hickey, took the Chair at 10 a.m., acknowledged the Traditional People and read Prayers. QUESTIONS Launceston General Hospital - Commission of Inquiry into Child Abuse Claims Ms WHITE question to MINISTER for HEALTH, Ms COURTNEY [12.02 p.m.] Former LGH nurse, Jim Griffin, was charged with heinous child sex offences in October last year. You have been aware of this deeply disturbing case for nearly a year. Why was an independent inquiry only established last month? ANSWER Madam Speaker, I thank the member for her question. As I outlined yesterday to the parliament the safety of our children is the highest priority of this Government and, I would hope, the Tasmanian community. The Premier and I have announced an independent investigation into this matter. As I have outlined both to the parliament and also publicly the terms of reference for this investigation have been informed by expert advice. I am advised that the terms of reference are broad enough to give the investigator the scope she needs to be able to investigate these matters. I know that I, the secretary of the Department of Health, and the Premier are fully committed to ensuring this matter is thoroughly investigated and acting upon the findings of this investigation. With regard to the matter of when information was provided, in terms of advice to the LGH around the suspension of this individual's working with vulnerable people provision, on that day I am advised the staff member was directed to not attend work, and access to the hospital and its information systems were blocked. Pending criminal charges, the former secretary suspended the former staff member on 5 August. A further update was provided in October which included an outline of the suspension process. During this time, I assure the House that support was provided to staff. I am also advised that continuing support is provided. I have had the opportunity to speak to a number of current and former staff members and assured them that both the provision of support and also mechanisms to come forward either through the disclosure provisions or through the independent investigation will be thoroughly investigated and they will be protected through that process as they should be. It is important that people feel safe and encouraged to come forward and that they are supported when they do come forward. I make that point very clear to all those people in the community who are listening to this. I am advised by the Department of Health that the appropriate steps were undertaken with regard to a disclosure process. As I have said publicly before, with the provision of further information, the decision, which was appropriate, was made by me, the Premier, and the secretary of the Department of Health to investigate this matter fully. Wednesday 11 November 2020 1 Launceston General Hospital - Commission of Inquiry into Child Abuse Claims Ms WHITE question to MINISTER for HEALTH, Ms COURTNEY [12.05 p.m.] The allegations made against former LGH nurse, Jim Griffin, are truly abhorrent. The emotional impact on Griffin's alleged offending is deep and has reached far across the country. What effort was made 12 months ago to identify alleged victims and their families to ensure they received the appropriate support? ANSWER Madam Speaker, I thank the member for her question. I also state how abhorrent some of these allegations are and I know many have been deeply impacted. Personally, it is a very distressing situation. With regard to the processes that have been under way, I am informed that there were various matters that were part of a police investigation, and I cannot comment on those. That is a matter for police. I have been assured that the breadth of the terms of reference that have been provided to the independent investigator are sufficiently broad in relation to the scope across agencies, to be able to investigate any matter that she sees appropriate. I am absolutely committed to this process. It is a very important process and it is important that we allow Ms Norton the scope to be able to conduct her investigation appropriately. I assure the member, and the House and the community, that this Government is committed to the findings of that and any further action that needs to be taken. Launceston General Hospital - Commission of Inquiry into Child Abuse Claims Dr WOODRUFF question to MINISTER for HUMAN SERVICES, Mr JAENSCH [12.06 p.m.] The allegations that many children were sexually abused by a nurse who worked at the Launceston General Hospital for 18 years has shocked Tasmanians. It has also been confirmed that same person was also employed at the Ashley Youth Detention Centre for five months in 2017. As minister responsible for Tasmania's most vulnerable children, you would be acutely aware of the impact of abuse and trauma on a young person. Your Government's independent investigation has limited terms of reference and focuses on the systems within the Tasmanian Health Service only and not on cultural issues or individual actions or cases. The Health and Community Services Union has joined the ANMF in calling for a commission of inquiry into this matter. A commission of inquiry would enable this matter to be properly and openly investigated with protections for witnesses and the power to collect evidence. Wednesday 11 November 2020 2 Will you do the right thing by the children in your care and previous detainees and establish a commission of inquiry that includes scrutiny of any alleged incidents at Ashley Youth Detention Centre? ANSWER Madam Speaker, I thank the member for her question. I can confirm that we as a Government, me as a minister, and my department, Communities Tasmania, take all and any allegations of abuse or risk of abuse that may be there against children and young people very seriously, particularly if those are children in our care. As you pointed out, I am advised by my department that Mr Griffin was seconded to the Ashley Youth Detention Centre for a little over five months from late 2017 in a position of nurse. I am advised that there is no record of any complaints made by young people or staff at Ashley Youth Detention Centre in relation to Mr Griffin. All allegations are promptly reported to Tasmania Police if they arise. This includes any allegations that may be described as historical. The department undertakes careful and detailed assessment to ensure the immediate safety of children and young people in care or in detention. The department has a documented procedure to respond to historical or current allegations of abuse against employees of the department, including working with Tasmania Police. I will not speak further on matters that are the subject of current inquiries. However, our procedures ensure that when relevant, allegations are reported to Tasmania Police. We will participate in the inquiry as required, and always work in the best interests of the children and young people in our care. COVID-19 - Access to Vaccines Ms OGILVIE question to PREMIER, Mr GUTWEIN [12.10 p.m.] I acknowledge the presence of former member, Mr Brooks, in the House. Premier, industry sources, as reported in the media, believe frequent travellers and those likely to be classed as lower priority for immunisation - such as the young and healthy - could be a source of profit for companies that have invested in research and production of COVID-19 vaccines. The Director of Oxford University Health and Economic Research Centre, Phillip Clark, said - Government and pharma around the world need to honest about whether citizens will be able to buy the vaccine privately to get faster access. Whilethis is the case with most pharmaceuticals there are arguments for everyone being subject to the same rights of access, a little like wartime rationing. To quote Dr Martin Luther King Junior - Of all the forms of inequality injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane. Wednesday 11 November 2020 3 Who will be prioritised and have free vaccines? Will people be able to buy vaccinations privately? ANSWER Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Clark for her question. The Prime Minister has said that the vaccine will be free for all Australians. He has made that point. We are working in National Cabinet on the rollout of the vaccine across jurisdictions, as I indicated yesterday. The federal health minister also noted that the initial rollout of the vaccine would target those in the front line, but vulnerable Australians as well. I spoke about that issue yesterday, noting we have one of the oldest and most vulnerable populations here in Tasmania. This will need to be managed carefully as we work our way through it. I understand the vaccine that has been spoken about widely in the media is around 90 per cent efficacy at the moment. I noted yesterday the Australian Government has backed a number of horses in this race. At the end of the day we are seeing one early period of public discourse, which has interestingly - and probably not surprisingly - sent some share markets around the world into the stratosphere. In response to your question, clearly, this will need to be managed very carefully. We will need to ensure the most vulnerable receive the vaccine first. As I have said previously, we are well-positioned in Tasmania because we have a large and well tested process for rolling out vaccinations. The Tasmanian population is one the most highly vaccinated in the country.
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