Parliamentary Secretary to the Premier, Colin Brooks has welcomed Monday’s announcement of the proposed terms of reference by Premier Daniel Andrews for the Royal Commission into Family Violence.

“This is the first step in honouring Labor’s election commitment to launch the first Royal Commission into family violence in Australia. It’s about shining the light onto this problem and finding solutions” Mr Brooks said.

“Family violence is a growing problem and the consequences are dire. Each week in Australia, a woman is killed by her current or former partner” he said.

“In 2013-14 alone, there were 65,393 family incidents reported to Victoria Police, a rise of 83 per cent since 2009-10. This amounts to a third of all police work, costing our economy over $3 billion every year Mr Brooks said.

The Premier announced that Justice Marcia Neave will chair the Royal Commission, with Patricia Faulkner and Tony Nicholson to serve as Deputy Commissioners. The proposed Terms of Reference will be submitted to the Governor with the view to having the Commission commence its work by February this year.

The proposed Terms of Reference include finding the most effective ways to:

• Prevent family violence
• Improve early intervention to identify and protect those at risk
• Support victims
• Make perpetrators accountable
• Improve the way that Government and society work together