Ban on sale of knives to juveniles debated in parliament amid calls for more action on knife crime
Laws to ban the sale of knives to juveniles amid a surge in youth crime are a step closer but there’s still calls for more to be done.
Gold Coast
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The state’s new youth crime law package does not go far enough and must include permanent use of police wanding powers, warns Jack Beasley’s family and Southport MP Sam O’Connor.
Brett and Belinda Beasley, who lost their 17-year-old son Jack in a fatal stabbing at Surfers Paradise in 2019, have been advocating laws to ban the sale of knives to minors.
They were both in state parliament on Tuesday when new legislation around weapons was being debated.
“This will protect the safety of all Queenslanders” Mr Beasley told the Bulletin.
“It’s not going to fix the problem but it is definitely a step in the right direction.”
The proposed legislation will make it an offence to sell a knife or other controlled items, such as gel blasters, to a person under 18 years of age.
Retailers will be required to securely store the items prior to sale and will have to display signs warning of the age restriction.
Potentially expanding the use of ankle monitors on children was also on the table.
The changes are likely to pass parliament on Wednesday afternoon and become law which Brett Beasley said would be another “big win” for the family.
The Beasley’s campaigning resulted in Jack’s Law being signed off in March last year on what would have been the 21st birthday for the Gold Coast youngster.
Wanding operations through Jack’s Law, which gives police powers to use handheld metal detectors to search people for knives in select regions, have resulted in the seizure of 450 weapons and the arrest of more than 1200 people since early 2023.
“We aren’t finished yet – we have to see Jack’s Law go statewide.”
“Every officer should have a wand detector and be able to use them in parks, shops, and anywhere in the state.
“This is our next push and we want to see it happen for community safety.”
Police Commissioner Katrina Carroll, who briefed state cabinet on Monday, called for an extension of police wanding powers to include shopping centres as Premier Steven Miles considered a raft of tougher measures to crackdown on youth crime.
Mr O’Connor in state parliament on Tuesday thanked Jack’s parents Brett and Belinda, for their advocacy and pushed for tougher reforms and an education program.
“A two-year trial is underway. I reiterate the LNP’s commitment to making that permanent to ensure the police have the right powers to find weapons in our state,” he said.
“It stacks up. Many weapons are off our streets because of Jack’s Law and it should be permanent. It should not be a trial. There are enough protections there and we need to ensure
it remains part of the police powers in Queensland.”
Mr O’Connor said the wanding laws passed last year which apply to safe night precincts and public transport stations and vehicles should be extended.
As for the new laws that have been debated around the sale of knives, Mr O’Connor said: “We need an education – not an enforcement – approach, because retailers need to be partners in this ban to make sure it works as it should.
“Change will be made in Jack’s name. This is another step in the right direction to make sure we are doing all we can to ensure no-one else is taken from us in a senseless knife attack.
“I also voice my support for the shadow minister’s amendments that he has foreshadowed to remove detention as a last resort and to open up the Childrens Court to victims and their families.
“That is the right thing to do, and I urge the government to allow him to move those amendments.”
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