NT Children’s Commissioner warns against rushed youth crime crackdown
NT Children's Commissioner warns rushed youth crime reforms could harm children and worsen community safety as government fast tracks plan to reintroduce spit hoods and tougher sentences.
The Northern Territory Children’s Commissioner has warned rushed changes to crack down on youth crime could have serious unintended consequences on a system already under significant strain - but the CLP remains “unapologetic”.
In parliament this week the Country Liberal government will push through youth justice reforms, acting in the wake of a 15-year-old boy allegedly stabbing and seriously injuring another child at the Royal Darwin Show at the weekend.
Legislation to be introduced on urgency will fast track changes already underway as part of a rewrite of the Youth Justice Act and Youth Justice Regulations.
NT Children’s Commissioner Shahleena Musk said she had not been consulted on any aspect of the rewrite and attempts to meet with the government had been shut down.
Ms Musk expressed concern the incoming changes could unintentionally harm children and worsen community safety, and would miss a critical opportunity to contemporise laws.
“The government’s failure to listen is failing our children and our communities,” Ms Musk said.
“The way children are treated in detention is vital to their rehabilitation and achieving the community safety outcomes we all want to see.
“Any increased use of harmful practices like restraints, separation and use of force that is not regulated undermines a child’s ability to meaningfully reintegrate to the community.”
Key youth justice reforms will remove the principle of detention as a last resort, reintroduce spit-hoods, allow courts to consider a youth’s full criminal history when sentencing for adult offences, expand the list of serious offences that are ineligible for diversion programs, and expand the Corrections Commissioner’s powers to manage emergencies.
Corrections Minister Gerard Maley said the CLP was “unapologetic” for ensuring “appropriate punishment” and protecting the rights of Territorians to feel safe.
“For too long Labor and their apologists championed the rights of offenders above the rights of victims and the community. That stops now,” Mr Maley said.
The Labor opposition said it was yet to be briefed on the proposed changes, but accused the CLP of failing to “do the heavy lifting” to bring down offending.
“We are seeing reactive and kneejerk responses from the CLP government, which means we’re not having a holistic impact when it comes to improving community safety – that is the number one priority for Territorians,” Opposition Leader Selena Uibo said.
Justice Not Jails spokeswoman Natalie Hunter said she stood in solidarity with the NT Aboriginal land councils, which last week made a joint statement accusing the NT government of overt racism and human rights abuses through its law and order agenda.
Ms Hunter called for the federal government to withhold funding to the Territory until the CLP “sit down with Aboriginal leaders and work with us to support our children, not harm them”.
“The CLP continues to inflict harm on Aboriginal people in every area of their lives like
never before. Children are being tortured in police watch houses,” Ms Hunter said.
More than 400 children were held in NT police watch houses over the six-months to March 2025, according to confidential police data reported by the ABC on Monday.
The National Network of Formerly Incarcerated Women said comments made by the Chief Minister labelling critics as ‘offender apologists’ was “deeply offensive”.
“To suggest that those who are advocating for evidence-based, humane, and effective approaches to community safety are somehow indifferent to harm or condone violence is not just disingenuous, it is dangerous,” spokeswoman Debbie Kilroy said.
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