The Andrews Labor Government has refused to answer questions about the Treasurer’s proposed $4 billion of cuts to the upcoming Victorian Budget.
The Child Protection Minister was asked in Parliament today to guarantee that not one dollar would be cut from child protection – but he refused to do so.
Between January 2018 and July 2019, more than 14,400 calls to Victoria’s child protection hotline were left unanswered, and incident reports of abuse to children in care continue to rise.
Foster carers are also leaving the child protection system due to the lack of support and mismanagement by Labor’s Human Services Department.
Comments attributable to Shadow Minister for Child Protection, Nick Wakeling:
“Our most vulnerable children do it tough and can’t afford for Labor to cut the allowances or support that they rely on.
“Andrews and his Minister need to be upfront about what child protection services are under threat from Labor’s $4 billion budget cuts.
“With serious incidents on the rise and phone calls about child abuse going unanswered you know Victoria’s child protection system is in crisis and at risk of more cuts.”