Young criminals detained by the courts should be subject to further education and supervision “in a residential setting,” regional Queensland MP and parliamentary youth crime committee chair Sandy Bolton has said.
This would be aimed at reducing an “unacceptable” re-offending rate, currently running at 90 per cent, she said.
Ms Bolton said detention should be followed by continued rehabilitation efforts after release, including education and training “in a residential setting for at least one year to create a new pathway in their lives.”
The Noosa Independent MP said she did not mean by this that detention should no longer be a last resort in sentencing, as reported last week.
But she said one crucial recommendation from the now-disbanded committee was to “lower the threshold for ‘Serious Repeat Offenders’ for whom detention was more likely to be considered, with the intention of reducing the current 90 per cent risk of reoffending by those who had been detained.
The recommendation was that rehabilitation (including in a residential setting) continue on release, by education or training “for at least one year.”
This would be part of “efforts to create a new pathway in their lives,” she said.
These efforts would need to be monitored on their effectiveness in “creating safety now and into the future.”
She said it was a complex issue which needed clear consideration.
“Community safety is paramount, and to create that safety we need to address both present risks, as well the future, alongside the many contributors identified during the inquiry” she said.
