Parliament debates raising age of criminal responsibility

The bill is designed to create Victoria’s first standalone Act for the youth justice system, and put in to effect key recommendations from the Youth Justice Review and Strategy, including raising the minimum age of criminal responsibility from 10 to 12 years old, promoting diversionary and restorative justice and introducing a trial of electronic monitoring.

“ 'It is clear that 10- and 11-year-olds belong in school, not in prison.' ”

Anthony Carbines, Minister for Police and Minister for Crime Prevention

In his second reading speech the Minister for Police and Minister for Crime Prevention, Anthony Carbines said the current minimum age of criminal responsibility in Victoria was too low.

‘It has been forty years since the minimum age was set at 10 in Victoria, and we have learned so much about child and adolescent brain development and what works to stop youth offending since then. It is clear that 10- and 11-year-olds belong in school, not in prison. It is time for the law to change,’ he said.

“ 'This bill means a person aged 10 or 11 can never be held to account for a violent crime.' ”

Brad Battin, Shadow Minister for Youth Justice

He told the Legislative Assembly that in 2022–23 there were no 10- and 11-year-olds either under youth justice supervision or remanded into custody and, in recent years, only 2 per cent of children aged 10 or 11 charged with an offence have had their criminal intent proven in court.

Member for Berwick and Shadow Minister for Youth Justice Brad Battin, in moving an amendment, said the opposition did not support the bill in its current state.

‘This bill means a person aged 10 or 11 can never be held to account for a violent crime. They cannot be forced into a prevention program. They can be forced to go through the justice system,’ he said.

'So whilst I have said before my absolute goal is to have no young person in jail, we need to have a system where when any person enters or should be entering the justice system, we can use wraparound services and, if need be, force these young people into these wraparound services to give them the best opportunities going forward. That is gone once this bill goes through.’

Member for Albert Park Nina Taylor said if the bill passed Victoria would be the first state in Australia to raise the age of criminal responsibility.

‘But I think it is important to note that that particular age range has not just been randomly selected, and there has been an incredible amount of work put in to make sure that there are appropriate supports and caveats around these changes, because we all want to drive the best possible outcome for our community'.

Member for Malvern Michael O’Brien said if a 10- or 11-year-old commits an offence, but does not have the mental capacity to properly comprehend it, the law already protects them under the presumption of doli incapax (from the Latin 'incapable of deceit').

He said 413 offences had been committed by 10- and 11-year-olds in Victoria in the year to March 2024.

‘By raising the age all Labor are saying is that they are going to deal with 10- and 11-year-olds who know exactly what they are doing and they are going to give them a free pass,’ he said.

Paul Edbrooke, Member for Frankston said the aim of the legislation was to help young offenders ‘reprogram their relationship with their community’.

‘If people feel safe, if they feel like they are meaningfully connected to the community, if they feel like they are in charge of their lives, if they feel like they have got a sense of purpose, they are much less likely to offend, they are much less likely to fall into drugs, they are much less likely to fall into a criminal life,’ he said.

Member for Caulfield, David Southwick said the state was facing a youth crime crisis.

'These are people, young people, that are committing adult crimes. They are not stealing a pack of cigarettes. These are serious, serious crimes and they are getting let out again and again and again, and I think we have got to differentiate from that. Yes, we need rehabilitation. Yes, we need support. But when young people do adult crime, these young people should receive adult time, clear and simple,’ he said.

Dylan Wight, Member for Tarneit, said the bill represented 'a monumental step forward for youth justice in our state’ and demonstrated ‘a shift from an ineffective punitive system to a modern evidence-based approach’.

‘This new approach prioritises addressing socio-economic factors that lead to youth crime and creating positive opportunities for the rehabilitation of at-risk children and those who are already involved in the criminal justice system,’ he said.

Tim Read, Member for Brunswick said prisons harm children.

‘The criminal legal system takes children away from their families, communities and other supports and pushes them down a path that often leads to adult prison,’ he said.

Dr Read said the Greens welcomed the bill but would move an amendment to increase the minimum age of criminal responsibility to 14.