BAIL AND CRIMES AMENDMENT BILL 2024
Unfortunately, they are the same social problems that those opposite did absolutely nothing to fix while they were in government for 12 long years. My colleague the Attorney General spoke in detail about the mechanics of the changes in the bill. He also spoke about the increases in offending by young people under the age of 18 for stealing motor vehicles and break and enter offences, particularly in select communities in regional New South Wales. Police have also reported that they are seeing young people repeat offending while on bail, putting themselves, their friends and the community at risk. Police, through Operation Regional Mongoose and other initiatives, have identified many examples of young people committing sometimes serious offences while on bail for other serious offences.
The changes are a circuit breaker. They introduce a time-limited Bail Act amendment, which will ensure that young people aged between 14 and 18 years, who repeatedly engage in break and enter and motor vehicle theft offences, can be released on bail if the magistrate has a high degree of confidence that they will not commit a serious indictable offence while on bail, subject to any proposed bail conditions. Secondly, the bill introduces into the Crimes Act an offence of filming and disseminating footage of certain serious offences to publicise or advertise the commission of that offence. This aims to crack down on what is known as posting and boasting, where offenders film their crimes, post them publicly on social media and then boast about the crime. That kind of behaviour only seeks to encourage violent crime and has no place in our society.
I emphasise again that this is a circuit breaker. The time-limited bail offence will give the Government and community time to implement the important measures we announced last week, including a new Bail Accommodation and Support Service for young people in Moree and the establishment of nine new Youth Action Meetings across the State. The Bail Accommodation and Support Service will provide a safe place for young people to stay, with skilled, qualified, trained and consistent staff on site 24/7, providing child-safe care. These young people will be linked to Aboriginal organisations, Elders and cultural support to ensure they have all the support they need to stay on the right track. This is what these kids need—a supportive environment focused on health, culture and education to break the cycle and keep them out of the justice system.
Additionally, the New South Wales police Youth Action Meetings, known as YAMs, are already in 11 locations across the State supporting up to 1,320 people per year, including 545 Aboriginal young people who mostly reside in regional and rural New South Wales. That will be expanded to Wollongong/Lake Illawarra; Tuggerah Lakes/Brisbane Waters; the Hunter Valley, Cessnock; Orana‑Mid Western, which is in Dubbo; Mid North Coast, Kempsey; Central West, Orange; Newcastle; Port Stephens; Hunter Valley and Lake Macquarie. I note that the member for Oxley is in the Chamber. I thank him for bringing this matter to my attention very early in the new parliamentary year. These meetings are practical. They bring together key local government and non‑government agencies to identify risks, develop action plans and put tangible outcome strategies in place to help young people get the support and services they need to stay out of the justice system.
The pilot YAMs in Coffs Harbour, Bourke, Walgett and Brewarrina were well received by government agencies and community organisations, with young people re‑engaged in health, education and community services as a result of their referral to the YAM. We know that the difficulties these kids face are immense. For example, in Bourke and Brewarrina 88 per cent of young people referred through the YAM had witnessed, or were a victim of, domestic and family violence. This package in its totality is about getting kids the help they need to steer them away from crime and the justice system. The problems are complex and the problems are entrenched, but police are doing everything that we ask of them. I also take this time to commend the NSW Police Force for its youth crime prevention work. As outlined in theYouth Strategy 2023-2025, the NSW Police Force works with partners to reduce the number of young people engaging in antisocial behaviour and criminal offending, with the aim of lessening their contact with the criminal justice system.
This strategy sits alongside the NSW Police Force's strategic initiatives and internal policies, including the Aboriginal Strategic Direction. Driving this strategy is the NSW Police Force's Youth Command, which develops and delivers programs that aim to educate, support and empower young people, and reduce the number of young people coming into contact with the criminal justice system. This includes working with regional‑based portfolio advocates within the NSW Police Force, PCYCs and corporate and not‑for‑profit partners, such as sporting codes. We need to do more. There is no doubt about that. As a Government, we are listening and we are acting. Most importantly, we cannot place the blame on the police for these deep‑seated social issues. The Department of Communities and Justice, along with the NSW Police Force, service providers, local government and other government agencies, are already working collaboratively on ways to address these underlying environmental factors, including through groups being coordinated by the Premier's Department and the Department of Communities and Justice, and locally through YAMs and other programs, such as Just Reinvest NSW.
Finally, I acknowledge the work of my colleague the Attorney General. We have worked closely with one another on this issue from the very start of our term in government. We both, along with the broader ministerial team, want to see a better future for vulnerable kids in regional and metropolitan communities. I commend the bill to the House.
