34. Since 2013, the NCC has recommended that the Australian Government
ratify the Optional Protocol to the CRC on a Communications Protocol (the
third Optional Protocol).20 Ratification of the third Optional Protocol would
provide new protections for children, and a similar level of accountability
for children’s rights as exist for rights under other UN Conventions.
Recommendation 8: The Australian Government ratifies the Optional
Protocol to the CRC on a Communications Protocol.
Recommendation 9: The Commonwealth Ombudsman, as the co-ordinating
National Preventative Mechanism in Australia, establishes a children’s subgroup to ensure those with expertise and experience of working with
children can provide specialist advice, information and recommendations.
2.5
Allocation of resources
35. Australia does not have budgeting processes that specifically track the
allocation of resources to all children.
36. In 2017, the Royal Commission into the Protection and Detention of
Children in the Northern Territory (NT Royal Commission) pointed out that:
Knowing where expenditure is directed is a basic requirement for
assessing community needs and planning service delivery in a
coordinated and resource-efficient manner.21
37. The NT Royal Commission recommended a review and audit of
Commonwealth expenditure in the Northern Territory in the area of family
and children’s services relevant to the prevention of harm to children, with
the review addressing co-ordination of programs, funding agreements and
selection of service providers, service outputs and evaluations.22
38. In response to this recommendation, the Australian Government
supported a review of Commonwealth and Northern Territory
governments’ expenditure pending further consideration of
implementation details.23
39. The acceptance of this recommendation by the Australian Government
shows that it understands the importance of tracking the allocation of
resources for children.
2.6
Data collection
40. Since commencing her term in 2013, the NCC has raised as a critical issue
the lack of available data on children disaggregated by age, location, socio7