A commitment by State Attorneys-General to develop a proposal to raise the age of criminal responsibility to 12 has been criticised by the country’s Children’s Commissioners for not going far enough.
In a joint statement, the Commissioners said while they were pleased that some jurisdictions had, for the first time, indicated they would look at raising the age, the minimum age of criminal responsibility in all Australian States and Territories should be 14.
“That is what the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child has recommended, based on a wealth of evidence and expert advice, and it is the international benchmark,” the Commissioners said.
“Furthermore, it is now three years since Attorneys-General began reviewing the age of criminal responsibility and still there has been no substantive change in any jurisdiction,” they said.
The Commissioners said this was despite “conclusive evidence, unanimous expert advice and widespread popular support for urgent action that would have an immediate effect on breaking cycles of disadvantage, reducing recidivism and providing better outcomes for affected children, as well as increased safety for the wider community”.
“While this statement from Attorneys-General is a positive step, we urgently need legislation to be tabled in each Australian State and Territory that would see the minimum age of criminal responsibility raised to 14 years,” they said.
“We urge all jurisdictions to prioritise the twin actions of legislating to raise the age of criminal responsibility and implementing holistic systems of early intervention and diversion.”
The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare has reported that there were 499 children under the age of 14 who spent time in detention between June 2019 and June 2020 throughout Australia — but only 43 of those were aged under 12.
