Page 1302 - Week 04 - Thursday, 7 April 2016
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I ask leave to make a statement in relation to the papers.
Leave granted.
DR BOURKE: Madam Deputy Speaker, as the Minister for Children and Young People I thank you for the opportunity to speak to the Assembly today about the ACT government’s key achievements over the past three years under the blueprint for youth justice in the ACT 2012-22, which I will refer to as “the blueprint”. I must begin by thanking my predecessors in this portfolio, Mr Gentleman and Ms Burch, for their great work in developing and then implementing the blueprint. I am very appreciative of what has been achieved and the legacy both ministers have left for all Canberrans in this important area.
The blueprint is a 10-year, whole-of-government and community plan to reduce youth crime by finding better ways to support young people. The intent of the blueprint is to take an evidence-based approach to youth justice, informed by the views of stakeholders across government and community, including the voices of young people and families. This approach has resulted in identifying clear priorities and strategies to realise the blueprint’s vision, with a focus on early intervention, prevention and diversion. The blueprint also recognises that by reducing risk factors and strengthening protective factors, our community will be better equipped to keep young people safe, strong and connected.
The blueprint aims to achieve this with six specific outcomes: to reduce youth offending and re-offending; to reduce detention rates for young people; to reduce the over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people in the youth justice system; to divert, where appropriate, young people from the formal youth justice system; to help young people and their families early and provide them with the supports they need; and to give young people every possible chance to be successfully reintegrated into the community upon leaving detention.
In presenting today’s statement, I note we are still in the early stages of realising this 10-year strategy. However, it is heartening to see that data across a number of areas is evidence that we are on the right path. Over the past three years we have achieved significant reductions in the level of youth offending and the number of young people in contact with or becoming further involved in the youth justice system.
The available data shows that every one of these goals is already being achieved. The blueprint and all those people involved in making it a reality are achieving positive outcomes for young people and the youth justice system as a result of significant investment and commitment to the strategies and actions in the three-year action plan. Indeed, of the 45 initiatives set down in our ambitious first three-year action plan, 42 are complete or substantially complete and the remaining three have work underway.
Since the introduction of the blueprint we have seen a 20 per cent reduction in the number of young people apprehended by ACT Policing, a 28 per cent reduction in young people under youth justice supervision, a 29 per cent reduction in the number
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