Anthony Albanese is facing criticism for rejecting appeals for a royal commission into violence against women, following the tragic deaths of two women in separate murder-suicide incidents.
In Tasmania, a woman in her 60s was found dead in what authorities described as a ‘very confronting’ murder-suicide at a remote residence. The man suspected of the crime also ended his own life.
On the same day, in Melbourne’s south-western suburb of Werribee, a 29-year-old woman was discovered deceased, with the body of a 31-year-old man located nearby.
These incidents have increased the count of women murdered in Australia this year to 27.
Despite the rising toll, when former ‘Home and Away’ actress turned radio host Christie Hayes pressed the Prime Minister on the necessity of a royal commission, he dismissed the idea.
Albanese stated on the Hit100.9 Hobart’s Dan and Christie for Breakfast show, “Well, there are calls for a royal commission about everything.”
But Hayes – who starred as Kristy Phillips on the Australian soap from 2000 to 2009 – fired back: ‘I think deaths of women are pretty paramount, wouldn’t you say?’
Albanese responded: ‘Yeah, they are, but you gotta work out what does a royal commission do, besides fund lawyers.’
Dan Taylor and Christie Hayes with Anthony Albanese after his appearance on their radio show
Hayes questioned Albanese over whether there could be a royal commission into femicide
Albanese responded that there’s ‘calls for a royal commission about everything’
After the on-air confrontation, Hayes told the Daily Mail the Prime Minister’s comments were ‘very tone-deaf and so out of touch’.
‘Does he want our women to be killed?’ she said. ‘No. Does he want to do anything about it? No.’
Less than 40km from Hayes’ radio station studios, Tasmania Police said they found a gruesome and disturbing scene at the rural home in Campania, north of Hobart on Friday.
‘Investigations thus far have indicated that it is a family violence case and we are treating this as a murder-suicide,’ said Detective Inspector David Gill.
Det Insp Gill described the scene as ‘extremely confronting’ for first responders.
‘These images that they have seen will stay with them,’ he said.
In Melbourne on Friday afternoon, police found the bodies of a young couple after they were called to do a welfare check at a home recently listed for sale.
Police are awaiting autopsies to identify the causes of death, but it is also suspected to be a murder-suicide.
Hayes said Albanese’s comments felt especially flippant, given the timing so close to the double tragedies.
‘After the interview, I was actually shaking,’ she said.
‘I just thought, “Wow, we’ve just had this true tragedy here and it’s not even on his radar.
‘It should be a fresh wound, and it doesn’t feel like it is whatsoever.’
Police raced to a rural Tasmanian home on Friday where an apparent murder-suicide took place
Hayes described Albanese’s reaction to her questioning as ‘tone deaf’
Hayes said her producer had told the PM’s team in advance that he would be asked about femicide, but that she asked him about a petition for a royal commission signed by 90,000 people off the cuff.
‘I specifically [asked about femicide] because May is domestic and family violence prevention month,’ she said.
‘I thought about [a royal commission] because it could be a practical step that he could take – a way that he could show he is trying to make dramatic change.’
Hayes had earlier quoted to the PM the sobering statistic that a woman is killed by a man once every four days on average in Australia.
Albanese said his government was ‘throwing $4.4billion at this’, and referred to crisis housing and ten-days of paid leave for people caught in violent situations.
‘Every single woman who suffers this fate is one too many,’ he said.
But he added that the ‘government can’t tackle it alone’.
‘It’s up to men to talk to other men about it,’ he said. ‘It’s up to our society as well to just say, “No, this is not acceptable.”‘
But Hayes hit back: ‘I just want to say respectfully, Prime Minister, I think it’s really important that you yourself keep talking about it.
‘We’ve seen four deaths in four days and we have yet to hear anything from any government official, especially yourself.’
Hayes shot to stardom in the 2000s when she appeared in Home and Away
‘Yep, absolutely,’ the PM said.
Hayes added: ‘As you say, men need to talk about it.
‘You are the man [who] leads the nation. I think we really need that leadership from you to address that this is a crisis.’
Albanese said he ‘understood’ there are calls for a royal commission, but said there had been a range of inquiries at many levels of government about domestic violence.
‘[The victims] deserve justice – the question is, does a royal commission do that?’ he said.
‘They take time, cost a lot of money, rather than money going into services. We’re just not doing well enough, as a society.’
Hayes told the Daily Mail Albanese’s response ‘did not go down well with me’.
‘We’re talking about murder, regular murder of women,’ she said.
‘Can you imagine if a man was being killed every four days by a woman? I mean, it wouldn’t happen.
‘I found it very dismissive. I wondered if he would say something like this in person to a son or a daughter who had lost their mother to violence from a partner or ex-partner.
‘Maybe there are requests for a royal commission into things that aren’t viable. But a crisis of femicide in Australia… I don’t care how much it costs or how much time goes into it.
‘There should be nothing on Earth that we’re not doing to try and get to the bottom of it. If it’s a royal commission, then so be it.
‘At least that’s something you could do. Particularly when 90,000 people have signed a petition [calling for one] so far. So don’t just dismiss it like it’s nothing.’
