Qld youth crime crisis: Auditor-General to assess state response
A wide-ranging audit will determine if the Queensland government’s diversion strategies are preventing young criminals from reoffending.
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The success of Queensland’s youth justice diversion strategies will be put under the microscope by the state’s Auditor-General, with a wide-ranging audit set to commence.
In a letter sent to Deputy Opposition Leader Jarrod Bleijie this week seen by The Courier-Mail, state Auditor-General Brendan Worrall confirmed a performance audit on diverting young offenders from crime was on the agenda.
“The audit is due to commence shortly,” Mr Worrall wrote.
“This audit will examine whether youth justice initiatives are effective in helping young people better connect with the community and in reducing their risk of reoffending.”
Mr Bleijie had requested the Audit Office conduct an urgent investigation into the government’s diversionary and early intervention programs, including legislative changes, links between child safety and youth justice, and the government’s expenditure on diversionary and early intervention programs.
Mr Worrall said the performance audit would assess whether or not the government was meeting its policy objectives efficiently, effectively and/or economically – but he was unable to broadly assess legislative impacts.
“I will consider the matters you have raised to the extent they are consistent with the objectives of the planned audit and are consistent with my mandate under the Auditor-General Act,” Mr Worrall wrote.
“Commenting on legislative changes that have occurred over the last eight years may be outside my mandate as legislation is the domain of the parliament and the Auditor-General cannot comment on the merits of government policy.”
Mr Worrall said he expected to present the report to parliament in 2023-24.
Youth justice was expected to remain a key topic when parliament returns next week, with the parliament’s economics and governance committee due to table their report into the government’s proposed law changes on Friday.
The committee have travelled around the state including to Cairns and Townsville to conduct public hearings on the Strengthening Community Safety Bill, which was introduced to the house last month.
The proposed new laws included increasing the maximum penalty for stealing cars from seven to ten years, introduce breach of bail as an offence for children, expand the use of GPS trackers for young offenders, and introduce the ability for children to be declared a serious repeat offenders.
Chair Linus Power said this week when asked whether there would be any recommendations to amend the bill, he would “reserve that for the committee to make that declarations”, but said it had been a positive process.
“We did see some broad support for targeting those that are serious repeat offenders, and that’s certainly a theme that came through, and that’s what the legislation has to focus on,” he said.
“This has been over a year where we have been working on this together, doing lots of listening, lots of feedback, and this caps that off.”
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