Sunrise host Nat Barr has demanded Anthony Albanese and Jim Chalmers address the ‘epidemic’ of violence against women after the death of a young mother.
Molly Ticehurst, 28, was found dead at her home in Forbes in the NSW Central West early on Monday morning. Her ex-boyfriend, Daniel Billings, 29, has been charged with her murder.
Police said Ms Ticehurst’s young child was not at the home where she was found and is safe.
The dead woman’s ex-boyfriend had been arrested on April 5 on serious charges but was freed on bail about two weeks ago, The Daily Telegraph reports.
‘This man was known to authorities,’ Nat Barr said to Anthony Albanese on Sunrise on Tuesday morning.
‘Can you commit to us this morning, with the budget just around the corner, that the leaders of this country have a plan to stop women being killed by someone they know?
‘We are doing this story, Prime Minister, every single week. Well, every one of those stories is one too many.’
Teacher’s assistant and young mum Molly Ticehurst, 28, was found dead at a home on Young Street in Forbes, NSW, about 1.50am on Monday
Nat Barr demanded Prime Anthony Albanese talk to Treasurer Jim Chalmers ahead of the budget to discuss how the government intends to stop violence against women
Mr Albanese agreed the story was ‘horrific’ and that ‘as governments we need to do more’.
‘As a society, we need to talk about this. We need for men and boys to discuss these issues and give support to women who are in this situation, and we need laws to keep up as well,’ the Prime Minister said.
‘We need to support increased domestic violence funding for things like housing so that women have somewhere to escape to.
‘So they don’t feel like they’re entrapped in a relationship.
‘One of the reasons why we changed the single parenting payment in this year’s budget was so that women didn’t feel like they had no choice, because of finances, to escape a violent relationship.
‘That was one of the findings of Anne Summers in her really important report that she did for us.
‘So we need to do more, as a society, Nat.
‘It is obviously completely unacceptable that this is occurring and that it’s so prevalent.’
Mr Albanese agreed the the story was horrific and that the frequency of these types of incidents was ‘completely unacceptable’
Barr seemed unimpressed with the response and demanded Mr Albanese talk to the Treasurer ahead of the budget.
‘Can you and Jim Chalmers talk about this?’ she said.
‘It is an epidemic, men are getting out on bail, and crimes are being committed.
‘We are tearing our hair out… it’s absolutely appalling and there are families all across Australia at the bottom of this pile and it’s heartbreaking.’
Ms Ticehurst’s father Tony described Molly as a ‘beautiful’ person and said she was loved by many.
He told Nine News he was furious that her former partner had been released on bail.
‘If they’d have kept him in jail as the police wanted, we wouldn’t be having this conversation,’ he said.
Billings was arrested at Fifield, about 100km north-west of Forbes, on Monday.
He was refused bail and will appear in Orange Local Court.
A crime scene was established and an investigation into Molly Ticehurst’s death has commenced. Above, the rural street where her body was found
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