Today’s report of the Royal Commission into Family Violence has sent a strong signal in advance of Friday’s COAG meeting that the State Government should advocate strongly for increased Federal funding to family violence legal help. The Federal Government is set to slash funding to community legal centres by 30 per cent nationally in July 2017. Continue reading
The potential for progress on tackling family violence following tomorrow’s report of the Royal Commission into Family Violence will be threatened by Federal Government cuts to services critical to the family violence response, community lawyers have warned today.
‘This royal commission could mark an historic moment of change in the fight against family violence, but the Federal Government needs to redress chronic cuts and underfunding to services, including a 30 per cent national cut to free legal help through community legal centres locked in for July 2017,’ said Dr Chris Atmore, senior policy adviser with the Federation of Community Legal Centres, today. Continue reading
The Victorian Federation of Community Legal Centres is joining other community legal peaks today (Tuesday 15/3) to brief Federal MPs and call on the Federal Government to take urgent action in the Budget to reverse deep cuts and boost funding for free legal help.
The call comes as thousands of people who cannot afford a private lawyer are denied free help for common but serious legal problems. Continue reading
