Report finds majority of Australians want to raise the age of criminal responsibility

MOST Australians think the age of criminal responsibility is above 10, despite the fact the law currently allows children as young as 10 to be jailed, according to new research. WHAT DO YOU THINK: VOTE IN OUR POLL!

Have your say! Should the age of criminal respinsibility be raised?

THE MAJORITY of Australians think the age of criminal responsibility should be above 10 years of age, despite the fact the law in Australia currently allows children as young as 10 to be sent to jail, according to new research.

RELATED STORIES

’Disappointment’ at NT major parties’ stance on raising the criminal age of responsibility

NT’s political parties noncommittal on raising age of criminal responsibility from 10

Law councils unanimous on raising the age after Darwin meeting

The discussion paper from the Australia Institute, released on Monday, found 73 per cent of Australians think the age of criminal responsibility is above 10, and 51 per cent think the age should be raised to 14 or higher.

It comes as Australia’s state and federal Attorneys-General are due to meet on Monday to consider the outcome of a national review to raise Australia’s age of criminal responsibility from 10 years old to bring it in line with the global median of 14 years of age, or higher.

One of the recommendations of the Royal Commission into the Protection and Detention of Children in the Northern Territory, established in 2016 after a Four Corners report revealed abuse of children held in the Don Dale detention centre, was that the age of criminal responsibility should be raised to 12.

The report also found only a 7 per cent of Australians correctly identify 10 years old as the age of criminal responsibility.

Researcher at the Australia Institute Bill Browne said the research found many Australians didn’t even know children as young as 10 could be locked up.

“10 year old kids belong in primary school, not prison. In fact, more than one in two Australians support raising Australia’s criminal age of responsibility to 14 years of age,” he said.

LIMITED TIME – Discounted NT News subscription: Read everything for $1

“With Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children 17 times as likely to be detained as their non-Indigenous peers, justice requires that as a nation, Australian policymakers needs to rethink how to tackle youth offending.”