Same-Sex: Forum: Busselton
Same-Sex: Same Entitlements
National Inquiry into Discrimination against People in Same-Sex Relationships: Financial and Work-Related Entitlements and Benefits
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Busselton Community Forum
[Busselton is 230 km south of Perth]
Friday 11 August 2006
6.30 - 8.00 pm
No audio files are available for this forum.
25 people attended the community forum at Busselton and discussed a range of issues.
The following is an overview of the comments made during the community forum.
These comments reflect the views of the participants in the forum, they do not necessarily represent the final conclusions of the Inquiry.
Medicare and private health insurance
Since Medicare does not recognise same-sex families, they cannot appear on the one Medicare card. This causes difficulties when the non-birth mother or step-mother is caring for a child who is ill, as hospitals and doctor's surgeries will only accept consent for the treatment of a child from the parent who appears on the Medicare card with the child.
Some people have had difficulty obtaining private health insurance as a family, as some funds do not recognise same-sex couples.
Health for the gay and lesbian community
Information about health issues relevant to gay and lesbian people should be distributed widely in schools and medical practices.
Many people explained that they were reluctant to access relevant information as it would "out" them in the community. If health information was distributed across the community, same-sex attracted people would not feel that they were outing themselves in regional communities and exposing themselves to greater risk of discrimination and abuse.
Travelling for work
Private residences are exempted from complying with WA anti-discrimination laws. This means that owner/operators of Bed and Breakfast Accommodation can refuse a same-sex couple accommodation. This causes great anxiety for people who travel as part of their employment (and sometimes take their partner) as quite often B&Bs are the only available accommodation.
Schools
Religious organisations - including religious schools - are exempted from complying with WA anti-discrimination laws. The exemption causes great concern to same-sex couples with children. A number of people at the forum said that they were anxious that their children could be expelled from a religious school because their parents were in a same-sex relationship.
Recent legislative changes in Western Australia
Western Australia's recent reforms (for example the Acts Amendment (Lesbian and Gay) Law Reform 2002) repealed laws which made the distribution of information relating to homosexuality illegal. The repeal of these laws has been particularly useful to lesbian and gay people living in regional areas, who have limited access to support networks or information.
Many of the gay and lesbian participants in the Busselton community forum did not have a full understanding of what the WA law reforms mean in practice and how the new laws might impact on their lives.
Education
Many people at the forum shared their experiences of being discriminated at school and at their place of work, including verbal and physical abuse. A number of people commented that a wide anti-discrimination education campaign targeted to the general population would be a useful tool in changing attitudes to same-sex couples among the general public. This would in turn reduce homophobic attitudes and discriminatory behaviour towards same-sex couples.
Centrelink
As Centrelink does not recognise same-sex couples, same-sex couples with children can receive single parent benefits, despite living in a two parent family.
