Palaszczuk’s youth crime legislation sparks fiery debate in parliament

Queensland’s youth crime issue isn’t going anywhere - as evidenced by this stunning series of comments about the scourge. WHAT WAS SAID

A fiery debate on the Palaszczuk’s government’s new youth crime legislation has dominated this week’s parliamentary sitting week, with members from all sides trading barbs and sharing heart-wrenching personal anecdotes.

With the government’s Strengthening Community Safety Bill a topic of debate, politicians from the government, the opposition and the cross bench have all weighed in.

While the LNP have pledged to back the bill, they were critical of the government not removing detention as a last resort.

Qld youth crime: Everything you need to know

At the other end of the spectrum Greens MP Michael Berkman said the bill was “disgraceful”, and those voting in favour should feel shame.

The debate at times was bizarre, with one MP admitting in parliament his wife left the car keys out, while another likened the laws to Swiss cheese.

See what your MP had to say on the divisive issue.

RAY STEVENS – LNP

I have had parents of these young criminal offenders — nice parents, great backgrounds, the kid is out of control and they want him locked up. During the short consultation period we had as a committee to take the views of submitters across the state we heard time and time again that the bill does not go far enough to address the 400 young criminals throughout the state who are causing this major problem.

The LNP’s Ray Stevens.

Even my wife leaves the keys to the car out so if somebody breaks in — and it has happened throughout our suburb — they will take the keys and no-one in the house will be stabbed, as has happened.

DALE LAST – LNP

We now know that the plan has more holes in it than Swiss cheese. It does not hold water. Queenslanders should be outraged that the Premier and the police minister tried to pull the wool over their eyes.

This government has failed victims across Queensland at a time when they were looking for hope, real action and changes to youth justice laws. They have been let down This should be called out for what it is.

It is a sham, and the Premier and minister should hang their heads in shame at their attempt to mislead the Queensland public.

They went out with this 10-point plan to get tough on juvenile crime in Queensland, and we now know it cannot work.

As a government it is your responsibility to ensure the safety of all Queenslanders, and if you fail to act the consequences will be felt by victims in the short term and by your government in October 2024.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL SHANNON FENTIMAN

Judges and magistrates are required to consider increases in the maximum penalty when determining the appropriate sentence.

If those opposite were more interested in the legislation and what was in the committee report rather than going around talking about things that failed when they were in government like boot camps, maybe they would not be surprised.

Attorney-General Shannon Fentiman.

I would love to hear more about how they think bringing back boot camps would work. The LNP have circulated amendments seeking to remove the principle that detention be a last resort.

Let me be clear. This is a longstanding principle in place in every Australian state and territory and is part of international law.

LNP LEADER DAVID CRISAFULLI

Then the rhetoric changed on Boxing Day — not because their heart was in it but because the community stood up as one and said “Enough”. Only then did we hear anything about the need for stronger laws.

Opposition leader David Crisafulli.

However, it turns out this was not about the government doing what the community wanted; it was about relieving a political issue, and what we read in the greens proves that.

Not since the asset sales of over a decade ago has a cabinet torn itself apart on an issue as much as it has on this one.

ROBBIE KATTER – KAP

I do this as the elected state member for the most crime-riddled community in Queensland, my beloved home in northwest Queensland.

For anyone who does not know, Mount Isa has been dubbed the Alice Springs of Queensland and has been given the unenviable title of ‘sin city’ by people from Tennant Creek who come to escape alcohol bans, as people from Mornington Island did for eight or more years as the alcohol management plans impacted there.

Robbie Katter.

At the outset, I will say that the KAP will support the bill although we are not excited about it. It is probably the wrong word to use, but it seems criminally irresponsible to use this bill as a response to the enormous momentum and demand for meaningful change that has built up in the public.

That is the really disappointing thing about what is being delivered here today.

TIM NICHOLLS – LNP

This arrogant and out-of-touch Labor government is taking Queenslanders for granted. Weak on crime and hopeless on the causes of youth crime, this Labor government is failing Queensland families in so many ways.

Under the LNP the laws were working and crime was down. Under Labor crime is up. It is a failure that all too sadly has led to far too many deaths and injuries for both victims and young people.

There is a 17 per cent rate of recidivism, up from 10 per cent a year ago — and we just heard the youth justice minister brush over the top of it as if it was nothing.

GRACE GRACE – ALP

Post COVID a lot of issues have emerged that we never saw pre COVID. To an extent we have always had a certain amount of crime and governments have tried to manage it.

Post COVID there have been unprecedented issues whether they be economic issues or relating to the availability of materials.

Minister Grace Grace.

An incredible number of post Covid issues have emerged. This is one of those issues that everybody is concerned about. I remind those opposite that detention as a last resort also applies to adult crime; it is currently in the adult Criminal Code.

So they want to take it out for young people but leave it in for adults.

Do they for one second suggest in this House that adults not be treated in the same manner by the courts for a particular crime because the UN lists detention as a last resort?

That is laughable. At the moment that is all they are hanging their hat on.

MICHAEL BERKMAN – GREENS

I will begin my contribution on the so-called Strengthening Community Safety Bill 2023 by calling that title precisely what it is: a misnomer at best and more like a bald-faced lie.

All of the people who made submissions on the bill — everyone with useful expertise — made it clear that they opposed it because it will lead to more crime and it is more expensive and harmful than the alternatives that would actually work.

The government rushed this bill through the committee inquiry process, allowing just 2½ days for submissions, because they know it does not stand up to scrutiny.

Michael Berkman.

It is a baseless, media-driven response that suspends the Human Rights Act on four occasions to deny children their rights, including to the right to criminal proceedings that are age-appropriate and that promote rehabilitation.

We imprison more children than any other Australian state, and where is it getting us?

If incarceration works, why does Queensland have a so-called youth crime crisis?

Why are approximately 90 per cent of children released from detention alleged to reoffend within 12 months?

The reason is that we have not addressed the underlying issues. In fact, this government has made them worse.

Queensland already locks up more kids than any other state. This is a disgraceful piece of legislation and I hope each and every one of these members of the government feel shame when they sit there and vote for it

LINUS POWER – ALP

Recently I spoke to a woman from my electorate in Regents Park who, over a year later, still clearly feels the trauma of her house being forcibly entered while she slept.

A young person armed with a knife took her means of transport and connection — her car.

Shockingly, the same person tried to return the next night to do the same thing to her neighbour, but a struggle ensued until the police arrived.

I know that everyone on this side of the House wants to protect her and work towards ensuring that we never see another one of our residents experience that trauma ever again.

In listening to Queenslanders, we know that the Youth Justice Act changes are an important part of reducing the pain of victims that I spoke about in the beginning of this speech.

LAURA GERBER – LNP

For too long now, regular hardworking Queenslanders have been facing violence in their local communities, on the streets and in their own homes. People across the Gold Coast — and, frankly, right across the state — are feeling desperate and scared.

They are fed up with the lack of action from the Palaszczuk Labor government.

Labor are misleading the people of Queensland, and once again this Premier has failed to show up for victims of crime in their hour of need.

What is more, they have failed a generation of children.

If the Premier is looking for someone to blame, she need look no further than in the mirror because the reality is that this youth crime epidemic is a result of failed legislation and failed leadership.

MELISSA MCMAHON – ALP

We are here speaking to a bill such as this because something has gone wrong with a small number of our young people. Something has gone terribly wrong.

We could have a philosophical debate on the history of juvenile offending. Here in Australia our foundations were built on the transportation of criminals.

Melissa McMahon.

Of the 160,000-odd convicts that were transported here, 25,000 of them were juveniles.

Today we are dealing with some thoroughly modern problems with a mix of colonial hangovers.

We on this side of the House want to see a safe and prosperous Queensland for all Queenslanders where young people on the wrong path can be diverted where possible and engaged in their community, not ostracised, not humiliated and not shamed.

ADRIAN TANTARI – ALP

As stated in the committee’s report No. 41, many submitters believe that the bill was too strong, it was too punitive and it went too far. Others believed the bill did not go far enough. This just shows the complexity of the issue we are debating here today.

MICHAEL CRANDON – LNP

As a matter of priority, should the LNP be successful in forming government following the October 2024 Queensland state election we will unshackle the judiciary, who have had their hands tied since the Palaszczuk Labor government watered down the laws to require them to consider detention as a last resort when sentencing young offenders.

DEPUTY PREMIER STEVEN MILES

We know there is more to do, and with this bill we are acting. Those opposite would have Queenslanders believe that there is a simple solution, but Queenslanders are smarter than that.

Deputy Premier Steven Miles.

They know the causes of crime are much more complex and the solutions need to be evidence based and put community safety first.

DAN PURDIE – LNP

The question is: why did the government impose this social experiment, its soft-on-crime regime, on Queenslanders and where has that ended up?

As a frontline CPIU officer, we assumed that the government would have a plan for that because we were already getting turned away from youth detention facilities because they were at capacity.

It turns out now that the government did not have a plan for that. It is about time this government stopped misleading the people of Queensland, give the police the resources they need and the tough laws and the staff they need to do their job.

DAVID JANETZKI – LNP

Over the past couple of years in this House I have given a lot of angry speeches about crime. I have given a lot of speeches calling on the government to listen. Time and time again, the city that the member for Toowoomba North and I represent has suffered because of the crime epidemic.

David Janetzki.

However, the Premier has not acted and the government has not listened. The Premier did not come to the crime forum in Toowoomba and the government did not listen. moving 17-year-olds into the youth justice system.

Is that how the government operates? feel a little sorry for the member for Sandgate. I feel a little sorry for the Attorney-General who is clearly now arguing for something she does not believe in. I feel sorry for the youth justice minister who is now arguing for something that they clearly do not believe in.

Is this how government is run and operated in Queensland in 2023?

AARON HARPER – ALP

Suddenly they have forgotten what happened before 2015 and before Labor came to government. Let me give members a history lesson.

The member for Burdekin was out the front with the federal member for Herbert wearing a blue shirt, along with the other LNP members. Their actions are politically motivated and designed to divide our community with fear and hatred. Those members should hang their heads in shame.

TIM MANDER – LNP

Here we are today with another dot point plan. We had a three-point plan. We had a five-point plan. We had another five-point plan. We had a 47-point plan around the Youth Justice Act. Today we have a 10-point plan. Hallelujah!

They have had a road to Damascus moment. They have seen the light. Suddenly the LNP’s policy is the saviour. That is what has happened. The hypocrisy knows no end. We have to sit opposite this mob and listen to this rubbish. They have no idea about law and order and crime control.

SHANE KNUTH – KAP

Sadly, this bill falls under the category of too little, too late. The government has completely ignored pleas from Queenslanders to fix youth crime over the past eight years and are scrambling to force through a bill that will do little to address the current crisis. In other words, the horse has already bolted.

Shane Knuth.

A complete overhaul of our system is the only hope to fix it. Albert Einstein once said, ‘Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.’ That is a pretty good description of this government’s approach to youth crime.

BRUCE SAUNDERS – ALP

The government has listened. We are listening. I am in my community every day talking to people. It is important that we as a whole community — not just Labor, the LNP, or whoever — make sure that people feel safe at home, on the street and at work. That is what this bill does. I feel the bill covers everything. The minister has listened. He has listened to me. The education minister has listened, too.

STEPHEN BENNETT – LNP

We have again seen the media play a role in these legislative reforms being brought forward after a tragic Christmas of youth crime including hooning, carjacking, smash-and-grab robberies, violent assaults and, unfortunately, murder.

As we have heard time and time again as we travel around the state — and it has been mentioned previously — there is debate about where people now leave their car keys in their house.

Do they hide them away so criminals have to ransack their home and risk violence against themselves, or do they leave them out in plain view so that those criminals can steal their car and hopefully leave them safe?

ROS BATES – LNP

Oh yes, they talk a good game — tough on crime they say; we will fix this with legislation they cry in the media. Instead, what do we see?

We see the same tired, trite, third-term marketing phrases they toss around without any real commitment to making our community safer or addressing the root causes of the issues driving young people into a life of crime.

Ros Bates.

Now that she has finally turned up for work, we can see the Premier’s plan. It is not what she told Queenslanders. Time and time again she ridiculed the opposition’s plan for breach of bail as an offence.

Then at the 11th hour there is a backflip. Perhaps the Premier is getting in some gymnastic training ahead of the Olympics.

TOM SMITH – ALP

Of course, we know that we cannot make excuses for acts of crime. We cannot make excuses when a young person goes out and commits any act of crime — especially a violent act of crime — but we must address the reasons why these situations occur.

We cannot hide from it and think that a game of politics from the other side, an orchestrated attempt with media, is somehow the solution. We need to understand that young people are complicated.

DEB FRECKLINGTON – LNP

That was the month the Premier decided, ‘Hang on a minute. It’s all getting a bit tough in ‘medialand’. We’d better do a change.’ This is the Premier standing up after those horrific deaths because communities are outraged just like my community of the South Burnett has been for years.

Deb Frecklington.

Police officers have been outraged for years because of the failings of this Palaszczuk government. What did the government do? The Premier decided to stand up and say, ‘I’m going to have a 10-point plan.’ That has all come unstuck this week, hasn’t it?

CHARIS MULLEN – ALP

I do not believe that anyone from our side of the chamber wants to see young people incarcerated. However, I do not shy away from the victims of crime in my community.

I worry deeply about the residual trauma they carry when their homes are invaded, their property is stolen, and when there is potential or real violence perpetrated against them.

I have and will continue to meet with and engage with individuals in my community who wish to share their experiences with me so I can offer ongoing support and assistance.

AMANDA CAMM – LNP

I would have to say that I do think some members of this House live in a fairyland. When we talk about a cohort of young juvenile repeat offenders, these criminals — and they are criminals — are causing such havoc in the community.

They have taken people’s lives and loved ones, they have brought fear into people’s homes, they have stolen cars, they have impacted people’s businesses every single day, they have impacted people’s family lives, and ultimately they have put at risk community safety.

MARK FURNER – ALP

There is a role for an opposition to try to represent alternative views to government policy, but scaremongering and blatant misrepresentation of facts and issues does the community no favour whatsoever. This bill is one part of the solution. There is an entire wraparound of other assistance and options available to ensure we break the cycle of youth offending.

STEVE MINNIKIN – LNP

I find it incredulous that we have a premier who has been missing in action — an MIA Premier. She is meant to be a lawyer, but she did not even get the right briefing in relation to maximum penalties. She could not even get that right.

Mark Furner.

That hastens me to think that, if I go back to 28 December, this is — yet again — another example of policy on the run. You have spin doctor after spin doctor — spiv after spiv — who would have gone, ‘Hold on.

We don’t have a community societal problem here; we have a political problem. That is the one reason that everyone on that side of the chamber should hang their heads in shame.

BRITTANY LAUGA – ALP

I have spoken with many victims of crime in my electorate and it has given me a greater understanding of how very traumatic it can be. After my car was broken into, my parents’ house was broken into and my partner’s car was broken into, I had an even deeper understanding.

Being a victim of crime can be an awful experience. Anger, frustration, grief and fear are all emotions that victims I speak to experience — including my parents. It is highly unlikely that any children are watching this debate with any level of great interest, but I have some messages from people in my community to children who may have been making some bad choices. Yes, they have made some bad decisions.

Yes, their choices have hurt many people — the victims, their families, the community. We are disappointed in some of those choices — very disappointed and hurt — but there is strong community sentiment to help support these kids to turn their lives around.

MICK DE BRENNI – ALP

You cannot have a conversation about youth offending without discussing the intersection of poverty. This is not a conversation that those opposite ever want to have or that they are equipped to have. For nearly 10 years — in fact, 3,168 days — we saw an Abbott, then Turnbull, then Morrison Liberal-National government brutalise this nation with stagnant wage growth and rampant wealth inequality.

Young people with disabilities as well are over-represented in the criminal justice statistics. Fifteen per cent of young people in contact with the system have at least one disability, much higher than the general population.

What did we see from the LNP?

They gutted the NDIS. They cut mental health funding. This bill is critical to strengthening the available responses for serious repeat youth offenders, the system that those opposite oversaw has created.