Page 3470 - Week 08 - Thursday, 18 August 2011
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The young people who enter Bimberi and the youth justice system do so under unfortunate circumstances, and we, as representatives, have an obligation to do our best to ensure that these young people turn around their lives, re-enter the community and become responsible citizens. We must guide them to realise their potential and encourage them to be positive contributors to the community. This must start from the day they come in contact with the youth justice system.
Today I would like to use this motion to highlight ways in which we can all move forward. The report gives ownership, as I have said, to the members of the Legislative Assembly and the community, and my vision is to see the recommendations put into action. The report is useful and confirms a lot of the things that we have been thinking. I wish to thank the Human Rights Commission for their efforts in this report. Although the Canberra Liberals and I have been critical of the final outcome and believe that we could have had a better outcome, we do believe that this report goes a long way to addressing the issues.
But as I have said before, there are real concerns about what was not looked at and there are real concerns about the culture in the Community Services Directorate that let this situation arise, which I do not believe have been addressed by these recommendations, and the fact that there are issues that have not been addressed by the inquirers, by their own admission. The report is useful in that it confirms a lot of what we have said. One recommendation, for instance, requires a “whole-of-government and whole-of-community approach” to develop a clear and shared vision and statement for the purposes of youth justice in the ACT and a clear and shared statement of purpose for the Bimberi Youth Detention Centre.
I am referring the Human Rights Commission report to the Standing Committee on Education, Training and Youth Affairs because I believe the report highlights the fact that there is a need for an ongoing brief to look at the youth justice system and Bimberi in the ACT. I think part of the solution to the problem is this Assembly being actively involved.
Recommendation 4.15 states:
The Legislative Assembly Standing Committee on Education, Training and Youth Affairs consider holding hearings every two years on achievements towards the vision and outcomes for vulnerable young people in the youth justice system.
Recommendation 15.1 states that the Legislative Assembly standing committee responsible for youth justice annually invite ACT Policing, the DPP, the Children’s Court, Legal Aid and peak bodies in the community sector to raise issues of interest or concern about the youth justice system. While I appreciate the recommendations in relation to the Assembly committee, I think that they have not been brought together sufficiently in this report, and I hope that this reference today will help to bring that together.
I note, for instance, that Ms Burch has written to the chair of the Standing Committee on Education, Training and Youth Affairs, Ms Bresnan, and asked her to comment on
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