Page 529 - Week 02 - Tuesday, 21 February 2012
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then used to make a joint decision between the police, youth offending team and the care and protection services. This team may refer back to the criminal justice system or recommend bail.
If the young person is released on bail, they are referred to the youth offending team program the next working day. It is part of the bail conditions that they must comply with this referral. The young person receives a full assessment by the youth offending team and is then engaged in a range of diversionary interventions, such as youth services, schools, youth inclusion programs and family support.
The third stream is for serious offenders, and they are required to follow normal criminal justice procedures through the youth courts. The benefit of a program such as this is diverting and reducing the number of young people in custody. The concept of justice reinvestment, which is proving to be so effective in the United States, is another strategy we need to explore in much more detail and work towards implementing in the ACT.
In raising this matter today I note the work being done by the ACT government in regard to the development of a youth justice blueprint and the establishment, after a motion raised by the ACT Greens, of a youth justice advisory panel. These are all important steps towards ensuring that young people are diverted away from the youth justice system, but it needs to go further.
The most critical time of intervention is at the first contact with police, and from the experiences in England and Wales we can see that a timely assessment of the young person allows them to be diverted from further contact with the system. Most importantly, this also means that young people are not held on remand unless it is absolutely necessary. The ACT Greens are committed to achieving better outcomes for young people in the youth justice system through approaching crime prevention in an evidence-based way. Some of this will take time, but the message today is that change takes real commitment and vision—a commitment to ensuring young people have better outcomes in the ACT, and a vision of a cohesive, rehabilitative and preventative-focused criminal justice system.
MS BURCH (Brindabella—Minister for Community Services, Minister for the Arts, Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Minister for Ageing, Minister for Women and Minister for Gaming and Racing) (3.54): I thank Ms Bresnan for bringing this motion on and for the opportunity to speak. I believe that we are in furious agreement in respect of the way forward in youth justice. The delivery of better outcomes for young people relies upon prevention, early intervention and diversion—that is, doing our best to prevent young people from entering the youth justice system and supporting them with opportunities.
Indeed, the message on the importance of prevention, early intervention and diversion is clear. This is a message that is understood by the ACT government, the Human Rights Commission and the broader community. Prevention and diversion are established features of the ACT government’s response to children and young people at risk of entering the ACT youth justice system and young people within the ACT youth justice system.
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