Response from
Martine Delaney,
Independent, Franklin
Equality Tasmania LGBTIQA+ Community State Election Survey 2024
Introduction
Equality Tasmania has surveyed parties and candidates on issues of concern to the LGBTIQA+ community during each state election since 1989. We ask for your responses to the following questions to better inform the LGBTIQA+ community and our families and allies about their voting options.
The relatively large number of questions in this survey is because we seek your views on services as well as law reform, and because of the ongoing threats to landmark reforms already achieved.
We urge you to answer each question with:
Yes
No
Undecided, uncertain or need more information
You are welcome to add any additional information.
The deadline for responses is Monday March 4th 2024.
If you have any questions please contact Rodney Croome on 0409 010 668
PERMISSION
To ensure we meet our obligations under the Electoral Act we ask for your permission to publish your responses to our questions. Please write your name below to give us permission to publish. If you are not an independent, please indicate your party or grouping.
Name: Martine Delaney
Party of grouping: Independent (supported by Local Network)
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1. LEGISLATION NEEDED IN THE NEXT TERM OF GOVERNMENT
a. Conversion practices
Questions
Do you want to see an end to conversion practices in Tasmania?
Answer – Yes, unreservedly.
Will you enact or vote for a prohibition on conversion practices based on the recommendations of the Tasmanian Law Reform Institute?
Answer – Yes, without hesitation. I would not support a re-tabling of the Bill brought to the House by the last government, but would definitely vote in favour of a bill based on the TLRI’s recommendations on conversion therapy.
Do you believe this should be high priority?
Answer – Yes, definitely. The Rockliff government obfuscated and prevaricated on its undertaking to ban conversion therapy, before tabling a bill that – rather than banning conversion therapy – would be likely to encourage practitioners to set up shop in lutruwita/Tasmania. This should be rectified at the very earliest opportunity.
b.Intersex surgeries
Questions
Will you enact or vote for a prohibition on medically-unnecessary interventions on children with innate variations of sex characteristics based on the recommendations of the TLRI?
Answer – Yes, certainly. If the individual child’s intersex condition is not medically life-threatening, then surgery should never be performed until that individual is able to give informed consent – regardless of whether or not such surgery might need further surgical intervention as the child grows.
Do you believe this should be a high priority?
Answer – Yes. I’ve been involved in actively lobbying for this prohibition for some twenty years. It is beyond a joke, that children are still waiting for their government to provide this protection.
Will you support the provision of redress for those who have undergone damaging, medically-unnecessary and non-consensual medical interventions?
Answer – Yes.
c. Hate crime
Questions
Will you enact or vote for reform of the Sentencing Act that allows for aggravated sentencing when a crime is motivated by hatred on the basis of a range of attributes including sexual orientation, gender identity and variations of sex characteristics.
Answer – Yes, without hesitation.
Will you support more resources to enable police to be trained to identify, collect data on, and prosecute crime motivated by hate?
Answer – Yes. Again, these are issues that have been raised with the Tasmanian Police Service for some twenty years. The continuing failure of governments to adequately resource this area has, unquestionably, has resulted in government failing to protect LGBTIQA+ people fully and to effectively prosecute many perpetrators of hate crimes. LGBTIQA+ Tasmanians deserve no less than any other marginalised community.
d. Stalking law reform
Question
Will you support changes to section 192 of the Criminal Code to ensure victims of those crimes can be sure police are empowered to gather evidence and bring charges without having to seek prior consent of the DPP
Answer – Yes.
e. Expungement of historical criminal records
Questions
Will you enact or vote for the review’s recommendations to be implemented?
Answer – Yes.
If you indicated support for the recommendations, does this include in-principle support for financial redress for survivors, of an amount to be determined by a parliamentary inquiry?
Answer – Yes.
f. An LGBTIQA+ Inclusion Act
Questions
Do you support an LGBTIQA+ Inclusion Act similar to the proposed Disability Inclusion Bill?
Answer – I would prefer both more information and time to consider this issue.
If unsure, do you support an inquiry into the need for an LGBTIQA+ Inclusion Act?
Answer – Yes.
g. A Human Rights Act
Question
Will you enact or vote for a Tasmanian Human Rights Act in line with the recommendations of the TLRI?
Answer – Yes; absolutely. Such legislation is long overdue.
2. PROTECTING EXISTING RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS
a. The Anti-Discrimination Act
Questions
Will you vote against any attempt to remove existing protections for students, staff and clients of faith-based schools and services?
Answer – Yes, without question.
Will you vote against any attempt to weaken or otherwise amend section 17 of the Anti-Discrimination Act, including any attempt to allow intimidation and humiliation etc in the name of religion?
Answer – Yes. Having personally taken legal action under S.17 of this Act, I can attest to its capacity to assist in curbing discriminatory behaviour and focusing public discussion on the need to address such discrimination. There is no plausible reason for seeking to weaken this section.
b. Gender recognition laws
Question
Will you vote against any attempt to weaken or otherwise amend Tasmania’s gender identity recognition laws?
Answer – Yes. I am incredibly proud of Tasmania’s world-leading gender identity recognition laws. Having started – and remained with – the 15-year campaign that led to this legislation, I will defend it for all time.
c. Respecting parental rights and opposing censorship
Questions
Will you respect parental choice and freedom, and oppose censorship, by allowing schools and libraries to include age-appropriate LGBTIQA+ books in their collections?
Answer – Yes. To do less than this wrongfully impinges on the rights of parents and potentially harms those children and the wellbeing of LGBTIQA+ people.
Will you respect parental choice and freedom, and oppose censorship, by not speaking out against age-appropriate drag story time?
Answer – Yes. To do less than this wrongfully impinges on the rights of parents and potentially harms those children and the wellbeing of LGBTIQA+ people.
3. LGBTIQA+ HEALTH AND WELLBEING
a. Government LGBTIQA+ Framework and Action Plan
Question
Do you give in-principle support to the development and implementation of an Action Plan and Framework with appropriate funding based on the Telling Us the Story report?
Answer – Yes.
b. Mental health
Question
Do you support a dedicated Tasmanian LGBTIQA+ mental health service?
Answer – Yes.
c. Service delivery and policy-making
Question
Do you commit to maintaining funding that will enable statewide service delivery by Working It Out?
Answer – Yes. I lobbied for this funding, twenty years ago, and see no justification for its cessation.
Question
Do you support a continuation of this funding?
Answer – Yes.
d. Community fund
Questions
Do you support this fund?
Answer – Yes.
e. Housing and substance abuse strategies
Question
Will you support LGBTIQA+ people being a priority group in Tasmania’s housing and substance-harm strategies?
Answer – Yes. Societal attitudes and levels of discrimination are major causal factors leading to the over-representation of LGBTIQA+ people in homelessness and substance misuse stats. Ergo, government has an obligation to prioritise the needs of LGBTIQA+ people in any strategy development.
f. Trans and gender diverse health care
Question
Do you support increased funding for the Sexual Health Service to meet demand and reduce wait times, as well as ongoing professional development for healthcare providers working with the trans and gender diverse community?
Answer – Yes.
Question
Will you oppose an inquiry into health care for young trans and gender diverse people?
Answer – Yes.
g. Clinic
Question
Do you support a dedicated, multidisciplinary, LGBTIQA+ healthcare centre?
Answer – Uncertain. Requires more information and thought. While there’s unquestionably a need for far better quality of healthcare provision to LGBTIQA+ Tasmanians, I’m not entirely sure this is best achieved by establishing a separate service.
If not, do you support a needs analysis to determine if such a service is required?
Answer – Yes.
h. Legal Service
Question
Do you support a dedicated LGBTIQA+ legal service?
Answer – Yes.
If not, do you support a needs analysis to determine if such a service is required?
4. GOVERNMENT, PARLIAMENT AND THE LGBTIQA+ COMMUNITY
a. Professional development for government employees
Question
Do you support funding to ensure all school staff, health staff, police and emergency services staff, prison staff and Service Tasmania staff have professional development in the issues facing LGBTIQA+ Tasmanians?
Answer – Yes.
b. Consultation and representation
Questions
Do you support the continuation of the existing government / LGBTIQA+ reference groups in the departments of education, health, police and emergency services, justice and across the whole of government (some of which have been in place for a quarter of a century)?
Answer – Yes.
Do you support the appointment of an equality minister in the State Government?
Answer – Yes.
Do you support the appointment of an LGBTIQA+ Commissioner (see LGBTIQA+ Inclusion Act above)?
Answer – Yes, in principle, but uncertain – would need to be considered in conjunction with my deliberations on the disabilities Inclusion Act.
Do you support the establishment of a Parliamentary LGBTIQA+ Friendship Group?
Answer – Yes! Definitely.
Do you support a Tasmanian LGBTIQA+ Staff Pride Network across the public sector (there are already agency specific networks in Police and Emergency Services, State Growth and Health?
Answer – Yes.
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