NSW goes for online checks
A new disclosure scheme will allow NSW women and men to check their partner's violence history online.
The NSW Government is looking to extend its Right To Know scheme, which was trialled in 2016 at Tamworth, Nowra, St George and Sutherland.
The pilot scheme allowed people to access information on their partner's past. The state says it is looking at expanding and improving it by setting up a hotline and an online portal to request information.
“The dating landscape has shifted considerably since then with more and more people accessing dating apps and dating outside known friendship circles,” Deputy Premier and Police Minister Paul Toole said.
NSW Women's Safety Minister Natalie Ward says the scheme could prevent assaults and save lives.
“Our priority is to protect a woman's right to be safe in a relationship,” Ms Ward said.
But not everyone is in favour of the plans.
In 2018, the Law Society of NSW called on the government to discontinue its pilot trial, saying domestic violence “is not amenable to simple solutions”.
In 2017, the QLD Law Reform Commission called on that state’s attorney-general not to implement a similar disclosure scheme, saying that the funds would be better spent on frontline services.
The NSW Government says the reformed scheme would be reviewed after 12 months and would be designed with input from domestic violence organisations.