Family and domestic violence

Overview

In October 2026, The Salvation Army provided a submission to the Tasmanian Department of Justice in relation to the draft Family Violence Reforms Bill 2026 (the draft Bill).    

The Salvation Army’s submission supported the intention of the draft Bill to strengthen Tasmania’s legislative response to family violence and improve safety, accountability and support for victim-survivors.  

The submission supports key reforms in the Bill, including expanded reporting protections and jury directions that recognise the dynamics of family violence. Sustainable outcomes require coordinated reform across legislation, policy, services and community education, with victim-survivor safety at the centre of all reform. In particular, significant investment in systems and services is required before a standalone criminal offence of coercive control could be implemented effectively in Tasmania.  

Key Points 

• Investment is needed in specialist training and resources for police and justice staff on family and domestic violence as a pattern of behaviours. 
• Significant increased funding is required for family and domestic violence services, including responses for victim-survivors, including children and young people, programs for persons using violence, crisis accommodation and housing pathways, co‑responder models and a statewide risk assessment framework and central intake service.
• Community education is required to ensure that people are aware of, and understand, family and domestic violence, and coercive control, and their roles and responsibilities in addressing the drivers.   
• Legislative reforms must work to mitigate the risk of victim-survivors being misidentified as the person using violence.   
• The proposed statutory limitation periods for family violence offences and breaches of Family Violence Orders should be further extended to reflect the barriers many victim‑survivors face when reporting abuse.
• Legislative and service responses should recognise family violence beyond intimate partner relationships, including within family, kinship, caring and family-like relationships.