In November 2023 the ACT passed the Justice (Age of Criminal Responsibility) Legislation Amendment Bill 2023, raising the age of criminal responsibility in the ACT from 10 to 12, and then to 14 from 1 July 2025. Then Attorney-General Shane Rattenbury stated at the time that “Raising the age to 12 then 14 will bring the ACT into line with international standards, uphold our human rights obligations, and support positive and just outcomes for both vulnerable young people and the wider ACT community.”
The ACT is making progress on its plan to reduce recidivism by 25% by 2025 (RR25by25), with Phase One seeing a 19.6% reduction through housing support and culturally appropriate programs. Phase Two includes $340,000 for a co-design process to create a justice reinvestment fund to prioritise investments in community-led early intervention and diversion programs. Then Attorney-General Shane Rattenbury stated in September 2024 that, “instead of only engaging with people once they are in the criminal justice system and imprisoned, we want to also support people both before they enter and after they leave custody.”
In June 2024, About Time reported on a review into the over-representation of First Nations peoples in the ACT criminal justice system. The Jumbunna Institute at the University of Technology Sydney is leading the review and completed the first stage in August 2024. The second stage of the review is underway, with the final report expected in 2025. About Time will continue to update readers on this review.
A guard at the Northern Territory’s Don Dale Youth Detention Centre could face charges for the covert surveillance of a young person’s conversations in his cell. The recordings, which the prosecution sought to tender in a recent high profile murder trial against four co-accused, included the young person discussing the victim’s death, the motive, and the involvement of himself and the co-accused in the murder. While the guard initially began recording due to concern about the young person’s risk of a medical episode, the Court heard that after establishing there was no emergency, the guard continued to record, with recordings made on a further 20 occasions via the intercom system.
While the contents of the recordings were characterised as being important to the prosecution’s case, the judge said to admit these conversations into evidence would constitute a “serious injustice”.
All four co-accused were found guilty of the murder of an 18-year-old man in Palmerston, Darwin in 2022, following the trial in late 2024. The three adults were jailed for life (eligible for parole after 20 years), while the young person who was the subject of the covert recordings was handed a 14-year sentence with a seven year non-parole period, due to being 17 at the time and his probable cognitive and behavioural impairments.
The New South Wales government has proposed new legislation to address rising concerns over antisemitism and hate speech. These changes stem from recent incidents where two synagogues were vandalised with swastikas and one was the target of attempted arson.
Proposed amendments to Section 93Z of the state’s Crimes Act include making “intentional incitement of racial hatred” a criminal offence, which would carry a two-year prison sentence. The reforms also include criminalising protests outside places of worship, making it an offence to block access or intimidate individuals, with a maximum penalty of two years in prison. Police would gain enhanced powers to move on individuals engaging in such protests. The reforms also include increasing maximum penalties to two years imprisonment for displaying Nazi symbols near synagogues and for graffiti on places of worship.
Alongside the proposed legislative reforms, the government has committed an additional half a million dollars to NSW Police Engagement and Hate Crime Unit to increase policing around Jewish schools and institutions.
Last year, a review into NSW hate speech laws ultimately recommended there was no need to strengthen the laws and to do so could impinge on other freedoms. However, NSW Premier Chris Minns emphasised that these laws are designed to protect people of all religions from hate and violence, with the proposed reforms part of broader efforts to counteract hate speech in the state.
The South Australian Parliament is set to pass the strictest knife laws in the country with new legislation introduced in February.
The reforms, aimed primarily at tackling youth knife crime, are the result of extensive consultation with the South Australia Police and will significantly increase their powers.
The proposed legislation would see expanded police powers to conduct wand searches in shopping centres, public transport hubs and extend knife-carrying offences to include childcare centres, preschools, kindergartens, licensed venue and universities and TAFE. It would create new offences for supplying knives to minors and require retail premises to display signage stating that knives cannot be sold to anyone under 18 years old. It would also require that certain types of knives must be securely locked up or tethered in stores.
South Australia’s approach draws on similar legislative measures introduced by other states. New South Wales is trialling increased police powers to use handheld scanners in certain areas without warrant to detect knives, while Western Australia currently allows police officers to carry out non-invasive scans anywhere and anytime within specified knife wanding areas.
Increased police presence in the Adelaide CBD and regional South Australia has resulted in higher detection rates of knife crimes in recent months.
The Malinauskas Government argues that these changes will help reduce crime and improve community safety. The move reflects a growing national trend towards stricter regulation and enforcement of knife-related offences across Australia.
In November 2023 the ACT passed the Justice (Age of Criminal Responsibility) Legislation Amendment Bill 2023, raising the age of criminal responsibility in the ACT from 10 to 12, and then to 14 from 1 July 2025. Then Attorney-General Shane Rattenbury stated at the time that “Raising the age to 12 then 14 will bring the ACT into line with international standards, uphold our human rights obligations, and support positive and just outcomes for both vulnerable young people and the wider ACT community.”
The ACT is making progress on its plan to reduce recidivism by 25% by 2025 (RR25by25), with Phase One seeing a 19.6% reduction through housing support and culturally appropriate programs. Phase Two includes $340,000 for a co-design process to create a justice reinvestment fund to prioritise investments in community-led early intervention and diversion programs. Then Attorney-General Shane Rattenbury stated in September 2024 that, “instead of only engaging with people once they are in the criminal justice system and imprisoned, we want to also support people both before they enter and after they leave custody.”
In June 2024, About Time reported on a review into the over-representation of First Nations peoples in the ACT criminal justice system. The Jumbunna Institute at the University of Technology Sydney is leading the review and completed the first stage in August 2024. The second stage of the review is underway, with the final report expected in 2025. About Time will continue to update readers on this review.
A guard at the Northern Territory’s Don Dale Youth Detention Centre could face charges for the covert surveillance of a young person’s conversations in his cell. The recordings, which the prosecution sought to tender in a recent high profile murder trial against four co-accused, included the young person discussing the victim’s death, the motive, and the involvement of himself and the co-accused in the murder. While the guard initially began recording due to concern about the young person’s risk of a medical episode, the Court heard that after establishing there was no emergency, the guard continued to record, with recordings made on a further 20 occasions via the intercom system.
While the contents of the recordings were characterised as being important to the prosecution’s case, the judge said to admit these conversations into evidence would constitute a “serious injustice”.
All four co-accused were found guilty of the murder of an 18-year-old man in Palmerston, Darwin in 2022, following the trial in late 2024. The three adults were jailed for life (eligible for parole after 20 years), while the young person who was the subject of the covert recordings was handed a 14-year sentence with a seven year non-parole period, due to being 17 at the time and his probable cognitive and behavioural impairments.
The New South Wales government has proposed new legislation to address rising concerns over antisemitism and hate speech. These changes stem from recent incidents where two synagogues were vandalised with swastikas and one was the target of attempted arson.
Proposed amendments to Section 93Z of the state’s Crimes Act include making “intentional incitement of racial hatred” a criminal offence, which would carry a two-year prison sentence. The reforms also include criminalising protests outside places of worship, making it an offence to block access or intimidate individuals, with a maximum penalty of two years in prison. Police would gain enhanced powers to move on individuals engaging in such protests. The reforms also include increasing maximum penalties to two years imprisonment for displaying Nazi symbols near synagogues and for graffiti on places of worship.
Alongside the proposed legislative reforms, the government has committed an additional half a million dollars to NSW Police Engagement and Hate Crime Unit to increase policing around Jewish schools and institutions.
Last year, a review into NSW hate speech laws ultimately recommended there was no need to strengthen the laws and to do so could impinge on other freedoms. However, NSW Premier Chris Minns emphasised that these laws are designed to protect people of all religions from hate and violence, with the proposed reforms part of broader efforts to counteract hate speech in the state.
The South Australian Parliament is set to pass the strictest knife laws in the country with new legislation introduced in February.
The reforms, aimed primarily at tackling youth knife crime, are the result of extensive consultation with the South Australia Police and will significantly increase their powers.
The proposed legislation would see expanded police powers to conduct wand searches in shopping centres, public transport hubs and extend knife-carrying offences to include childcare centres, preschools, kindergartens, licensed venue and universities and TAFE. It would create new offences for supplying knives to minors and require retail premises to display signage stating that knives cannot be sold to anyone under 18 years old. It would also require that certain types of knives must be securely locked up or tethered in stores.
South Australia’s approach draws on similar legislative measures introduced by other states. New South Wales is trialling increased police powers to use handheld scanners in certain areas without warrant to detect knives, while Western Australia currently allows police officers to carry out non-invasive scans anywhere and anytime within specified knife wanding areas.
Increased police presence in the Adelaide CBD and regional South Australia has resulted in higher detection rates of knife crimes in recent months.
The Malinauskas Government argues that these changes will help reduce crime and improve community safety. The move reflects a growing national trend towards stricter regulation and enforcement of knife-related offences across Australia.
Earlier this year, the double album Banksia Beats Volume 3 was released. The 15 tracks were written by young people detained in Unit 18 and Banksia Hill Detention Centre, facilitated by program Hip Hop 101.
The therapeutic program is run by artists Flewnt, Optamus and Rush, who deliver multiple lyric-writing workshops each week at the youth detention centres. The sessions also include freestyles in the purpose-built studio at Banksia Hill and boast a long waiting list due to their immense popularity. Noongar rapper Flewnt states that Hip Hop 101 participants “really are pouring their hearts out in these songs and they genuinely mean what they say” and that “the therapy, the speaking of stories and connection back to Culture through music, has been really incredible”.
The album was launched at an event inside Banksia Hill Detention Centre, where Flewnt, Optamus and Rush also performed some of their own songs. Young participants praise Hip Hop 101. One voiced, “you can rap your future. You can rap your past. Yeah you know, story songs. It’s […] getting it all out there”.
Another expressed, “some people don’t like talking about their feelings, talking about what they’re going through. But it’s like in the music ways, we can talk about our feelings”.
One promising young artist has five tracks on Banksia Beats Volume 3. In one of the tracks titled BLAP (Blak Loud And Proud), she raps: “Misunderstood, think we’re no good, tryna do better, get out the hood, survival is taught to the struggle is taught to the trauma, can never be taught in the book”.
Banksia Beats Volume 3 is available on SoundCloud.
Victoria’s Premier, Jacinta Allan, has ordered a “review” of the state’s bail laws, but has not provided details about its scope or objectives. The announcement came ahead of the recent crucial by-elections in Werribee and Prahran, where law and order issues were reported to be heavily influencing voter sentiment.
Critics argue the review is politically motivated to address Labor's falling support, especially in Werribee where first preference votes for Labor dropped from 45% in the 2022 state election to 28.7% in the by-election vote count at the time of writing.
Speaking about the review in a press conference, Allan could not provide specifics or points of concern, but emphasised that she did not necessarily want more alleged offenders remanded without bail.
Aboriginal advocacy groups have criticised the move, accusing the government of prioritising political gain over community safety. The Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service (VALS) and the Aboriginal Justice Caucus argued that the review could undermine previous reforms, including bail law reforms that were spearheaded by the family of Veronica Nelson, a proud Gunditjmara, Dja Dja Wurrung, Wiradjuri and Yorta Yorta woman who was refused bail for shop theft in 2019, and passed while in police custody.
Advocates warn that reversing recent changes to bail laws could worsen existing disparities, particularly for First Nations people, children and youth.
Critics argue that any review must carefully consider the purpose of past reforms and their impact, rather than be a reaction to short-term political pressures.
The Tasmanian Government has committed to the full implementation of all recommendations from the Commission of Inquiry into the Tasmanian Government’s Responses to Child Sexual Abuse in Institutional Settings. Many of these recommendations relate to the safety and wellbeing of children in the out-of-home care and criminal legal systems.
However, the Report of Government Services relating to youth justice released by the Productivity Commission in late January 2025 shows a lack of progress in relation to a number of targets. For example, despite committing to changes to reduce the number of children in custody – including amendments to bail laws, raising the age of criminal responsibility and the closure of Ashley Youth Detention Centre (AYDC) – the data shows an increase in the number of children in detention over the past year, most of whom spend time in prison on remand.
The data also shows ongoing issues relating to safety and wellbeing at the youth prison.
Although there were no serious assaults recorded over the last year, the rates of non-serious assaults, both in relation to children who are detained at the centre and the staff who work there, are the highest of any state or territory in Australia.
This data echoes safety concerns raised in recent reports relating both to the lack of appropriate services (particularly mental health supports) for children detained at AYDC and the need for additional support for staff to ensure issues such as staff shortages are not impacting child safety and wellbeing.
The Albanese Government has proposed amendments to the criminal code to introduce mandatory minimum sentences for hate and terror crimes. These include six years for a range of terror offences, three years for financing terror and one year for displaying hate symbols. Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke described the changes as the toughest laws Australia has ever had against hate crimes.
The use of mandatory minimum sentences has sparked significant criticism. The move marks a significant departure from Labor’s previous stance against minimum sentencing, which it argued was ineffective and led to unjust outcomes.
In a media release, the Law Council of Australia (LCA) stated it was “extremely disappointed” in Labor’s decision to introduce mandatory minimums, and would disproportionately impact vulnerable groups.
“Mandatory sentencing laws are arbitrary and limit the individual’s right to a fair trial by preventing judges from imposing a just penalty based on the unique circumstances of each offence and offender.” said LCA President Juliana Warner. “Judges are best placed to determine the appropriate and just penalty under these laws on an individual, case-by-case basis.”
Despite opposition from the crossbench, the government is seeking broad parliamentary support for the bill, signaling a bipartisan approach to combat hate speech and violence in Australia.
BailSafe Australia, a for-profit private company that provided GPS tracking and rehabilitation services, recently shut down unexpectedly, leaving the whereabouts of numerous people on bail unaccounted for. The company, which tracked people on various charges including violent offences, had been approved by courts as a service provider for electronic monitoring bail conditions. However, its sudden closure has caused a crisis as courts, authorities and the people being monitored were not informed, and only BailSafe held records of the individuals it monitored.
The Victorian government has condemned the company's failure to notify relevant authorities, with Victoria Police also unaware of the shutdown. The collapse follows a police investigation into the company for potential criminal activity and misconduct. Despite this, the company continued operations until its closure.
The shutdown has caused alarm in both Victoria and New South Wales, with concerns over people on bail not being properly monitored. It has also caused a scramble for defence barristers and lawyers for bail hearings based on the availability of the service. The incident has raised questions about the lack of regulation and oversight for private bail providers, especially following similar issues with other providers.
On 5 February 2025, the Queensland Sentencing Advisory Council (QSAC) released its final report on the sentencing of sexual assault and rape offences. This final report is the result of a 19-month-long review, including research into community views, extensive consultation with key stakeholders, a consultation paper, and a detailed analysis of sentencing outcomes.
QSAC analysed a period of 18 years of data, and found that: over one-third of sentenced rape cases were also domestic violence offences but very few sexual assaults were committed in a domestic and family violence context.
QSAC made a total of 28 recommendations to improve sentencing practices and processes for sexual assault and rape offences.
Overall, QSAC’s recommendations aim to ensure that penalties imposed for sexual assault and rape adequately reflect community views about the seriousness of this form of offending and sentencing purposes, including just punishment, denunciation and community protection. The report specifically recommended that the sentencing purposes and principles set out in the Penalties and Sentences Act 1992 (QLD) provide a proper framework for the sentencing of sexual assault and rape offences. It also recommended that the penalty and sentencing framework supports sentences being imposed for this form of offending that enable the person sentenced to have access to supervision, programs and treatment interventions, and allow Queensland Corrective Services to respond better than they can under the current orders available to issues of escalating risk.
For further information or to ask for a copy of this report, you can write to QSAC at:
Earlier this year, the double album Banksia Beats Volume 3 was released. The 15 tracks were written by young people detained in Unit 18 and Banksia Hill Detention Centre, facilitated by program Hip Hop 101.
The therapeutic program is run by artists Flewnt, Optamus and Rush, who deliver multiple lyric-writing workshops each week at the youth detention centres. The sessions also include freestyles in the purpose-built studio at Banksia Hill and boast a long waiting list due to their immense popularity. Noongar rapper Flewnt states that Hip Hop 101 participants “really are pouring their hearts out in these songs and they genuinely mean what they say” and that “the therapy, the speaking of stories and connection back to Culture through music, has been really incredible”.
The album was launched at an event inside Banksia Hill Detention Centre, where Flewnt, Optamus and Rush also performed some of their own songs. Young participants praise Hip Hop 101. One voiced, “you can rap your future. You can rap your past. Yeah you know, story songs. It’s […] getting it all out there”.
Another expressed, “some people don’t like talking about their feelings, talking about what they’re going through. But it’s like in the music ways, we can talk about our feelings”.
One promising young artist has five tracks on Banksia Beats Volume 3. In one of the tracks titled BLAP (Blak Loud And Proud), she raps: “Misunderstood, think we’re no good, tryna do better, get out the hood, survival is taught to the struggle is taught to the trauma, can never be taught in the book”.
Banksia Beats Volume 3 is available on SoundCloud.
Victoria’s Premier, Jacinta Allan, has ordered a “review” of the state’s bail laws, but has not provided details about its scope or objectives. The announcement came ahead of the recent crucial by-elections in Werribee and Prahran, where law and order issues were reported to be heavily influencing voter sentiment.
Critics argue the review is politically motivated to address Labor's falling support, especially in Werribee where first preference votes for Labor dropped from 45% in the 2022 state election to 28.7% in the by-election vote count at the time of writing.
Speaking about the review in a press conference, Allan could not provide specifics or points of concern, but emphasised that she did not necessarily want more alleged offenders remanded without bail.
Aboriginal advocacy groups have criticised the move, accusing the government of prioritising political gain over community safety. The Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service (VALS) and the Aboriginal Justice Caucus argued that the review could undermine previous reforms, including bail law reforms that were spearheaded by the family of Veronica Nelson, a proud Gunditjmara, Dja Dja Wurrung, Wiradjuri and Yorta Yorta woman who was refused bail for shop theft in 2019, and passed while in police custody.
Advocates warn that reversing recent changes to bail laws could worsen existing disparities, particularly for First Nations people, children and youth.
Critics argue that any review must carefully consider the purpose of past reforms and their impact, rather than be a reaction to short-term political pressures.
The Tasmanian Government has committed to the full implementation of all recommendations from the Commission of Inquiry into the Tasmanian Government’s Responses to Child Sexual Abuse in Institutional Settings. Many of these recommendations relate to the safety and wellbeing of children in the out-of-home care and criminal legal systems.
However, the Report of Government Services relating to youth justice released by the Productivity Commission in late January 2025 shows a lack of progress in relation to a number of targets. For example, despite committing to changes to reduce the number of children in custody – including amendments to bail laws, raising the age of criminal responsibility and the closure of Ashley Youth Detention Centre (AYDC) – the data shows an increase in the number of children in detention over the past year, most of whom spend time in prison on remand.
The data also shows ongoing issues relating to safety and wellbeing at the youth prison.
Although there were no serious assaults recorded over the last year, the rates of non-serious assaults, both in relation to children who are detained at the centre and the staff who work there, are the highest of any state or territory in Australia.
This data echoes safety concerns raised in recent reports relating both to the lack of appropriate services (particularly mental health supports) for children detained at AYDC and the need for additional support for staff to ensure issues such as staff shortages are not impacting child safety and wellbeing.
The Albanese Government has proposed amendments to the criminal code to introduce mandatory minimum sentences for hate and terror crimes. These include six years for a range of terror offences, three years for financing terror and one year for displaying hate symbols. Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke described the changes as the toughest laws Australia has ever had against hate crimes.
The use of mandatory minimum sentences has sparked significant criticism. The move marks a significant departure from Labor’s previous stance against minimum sentencing, which it argued was ineffective and led to unjust outcomes.
In a media release, the Law Council of Australia (LCA) stated it was “extremely disappointed” in Labor’s decision to introduce mandatory minimums, and would disproportionately impact vulnerable groups.
“Mandatory sentencing laws are arbitrary and limit the individual’s right to a fair trial by preventing judges from imposing a just penalty based on the unique circumstances of each offence and offender.” said LCA President Juliana Warner. “Judges are best placed to determine the appropriate and just penalty under these laws on an individual, case-by-case basis.”
Despite opposition from the crossbench, the government is seeking broad parliamentary support for the bill, signaling a bipartisan approach to combat hate speech and violence in Australia.
BailSafe Australia, a for-profit private company that provided GPS tracking and rehabilitation services, recently shut down unexpectedly, leaving the whereabouts of numerous people on bail unaccounted for. The company, which tracked people on various charges including violent offences, had been approved by courts as a service provider for electronic monitoring bail conditions. However, its sudden closure has caused a crisis as courts, authorities and the people being monitored were not informed, and only BailSafe held records of the individuals it monitored.
The Victorian government has condemned the company's failure to notify relevant authorities, with Victoria Police also unaware of the shutdown. The collapse follows a police investigation into the company for potential criminal activity and misconduct. Despite this, the company continued operations until its closure.
The shutdown has caused alarm in both Victoria and New South Wales, with concerns over people on bail not being properly monitored. It has also caused a scramble for defence barristers and lawyers for bail hearings based on the availability of the service. The incident has raised questions about the lack of regulation and oversight for private bail providers, especially following similar issues with other providers.
On 5 February 2025, the Queensland Sentencing Advisory Council (QSAC) released its final report on the sentencing of sexual assault and rape offences. This final report is the result of a 19-month-long review, including research into community views, extensive consultation with key stakeholders, a consultation paper, and a detailed analysis of sentencing outcomes.
QSAC analysed a period of 18 years of data, and found that: over one-third of sentenced rape cases were also domestic violence offences but very few sexual assaults were committed in a domestic and family violence context.
QSAC made a total of 28 recommendations to improve sentencing practices and processes for sexual assault and rape offences.
Overall, QSAC’s recommendations aim to ensure that penalties imposed for sexual assault and rape adequately reflect community views about the seriousness of this form of offending and sentencing purposes, including just punishment, denunciation and community protection. The report specifically recommended that the sentencing purposes and principles set out in the Penalties and Sentences Act 1992 (QLD) provide a proper framework for the sentencing of sexual assault and rape offences. It also recommended that the penalty and sentencing framework supports sentences being imposed for this form of offending that enable the person sentenced to have access to supervision, programs and treatment interventions, and allow Queensland Corrective Services to respond better than they can under the current orders available to issues of escalating risk.
For further information or to ask for a copy of this report, you can write to QSAC at:
Prisoners’ Legal Service (PLS) is a not-for-profit community legal centre that is dedicated to providing information and advice to people in Queensland prisons. We are unable to assist people who are imprisoned in or on parole orders from other states or territories in Australia.
Including tough bail laws being introduced in Victoria, the South Australian Government ruling out raising the age of criminal responsibility, a new parole board president appointed in Queensland and more.
The Australian Federal election is coming up. This is about voting for the Prime Minister and other federal politicians. It will be held on 3 May 2025.
“We can’t get information about how a party or candidate’s policies must impact prisoners,” Kelly told About Time. ‘Prison officers also will not provide us with any information as it is seen as political.”
Prison work differs across the country.
Help us get About Time off the ground. All donations are tax deductible and will be vital in providing an essential resource for people in prison and their loved ones.
Help us get About Time off the ground. All donations are tax deductible and will be vital in providing an essential resource for people in prison and their loved ones.
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