Wednesday, 7 February 2024

Cherry Creek Youth Justice Centre

David DAVIS (Southern Metropolitan) (12:14): (401) My question is to Minister Erdogan. Minister, in June last year you said:

The opening of the Cherry Creek Youth Justice Precinct marks a new era of modern, fit-for-purpose support for young people, better safety for staff and ultimately a safer community for all Victorians.

Workers within the facility, however, say the precinct is so dangerous due to gangs of young offenders terrorising staff that the facility is now known as ‘Shiv Creek’. Given the latest Productivity Commission report showing 70.5 per cent of youths aged 10 to 16 returning to detention or supervision within 12 months of being released, when will the minister admit that these young offenders, staff and the Victorian community have been failed?

Enver ERDOGAN (Northern Metropolitan – Minister for Corrections, Minister for Youth Justice, Minister for Victim Support) (12:15): I thank Mr Davis for his question and his interest in our youth justice system. We take the safety and security of our staff very seriously, and our investment in Cherry Creek was about a safer environment for our staff but also the young people in our custodial care. We continue to support our staff with enhanced training. We have a new certificate IV in operational safety and training that was implemented as part of the upgrade at Cherry Creek, understanding that Cherry Creek is transformational. It is a new model of intensive treatment, medical care, physical and social wellbeing. It is about making sure these young people have the opportunity to re-engage with education and an opportunity for vocational training and then employment. Yesterday Mr McCracken talked about Gordon TAFE. I know Gordon TAFE very well because they are one of our partner organisations at Cherry Creek that are working very hard to give these young people the opportunity to turn their lives around.

I have seen the claims that you are referring to, Mr Davis – unsubstantiated claims and rumours. I know you are not going to allow truth to get in the way of a good story, but you refer to the Report on Government Services, so let me tell you about the Report on Government Services. The Report on Government Services states that there was a material decrease in the number of assaults on staff in our system, which is a positive indicator. Assaults on staff have fallen by 20 per cent and serious assaults have decreased by more than 50 per cent. While even one incident is one too many in my view and the view of the government – we take workplace safety very seriously – it is good to see that there has been a decrease in the number of incidents in our custodial settings.

Nick McGowan: On a point of order, President, as the minister is referring to a speech or notes or a document, I would ask him to table the document so we can actually see the figures.

The PRESIDENT: Is the minister just referring to notes?

Members interjecting.

The PRESIDENT: I actually might help out the whole chamber on this point of order. The minister is expected to give a factual response, and therefore referring to documents that assist him in that probably helps the whole chamber.

Enver ERDOGAN: Mr Davis was asking about the Report on Government Services, so I just wanted to share that statistic that there had been a 20 per cent decrease in serious assaults and a decrease of 50 per cent across the board. But indeed one incident is too many, and we take worker safety as paramount. That is why we have invested in a new facility which is designed to keep the young people and the staff as safe as possible. The smaller units are designed to address their behaviour. I notice that those opposite do not want the truth to get in the way of their story, but our system has gone through a transformation. Our Cherry Creek facility is changing the way we engage young people, but obviously it is up to those young people whether they take that opportunity.

David DAVIS (Southern Metropolitan) (12:18): I notice that the minister did not engage with the title that has been given of ‘Shiv Creek’, and he did not engage with the recidivism figures from the Productivity Commission. I make the following point now and ask the following supplementary: Minister, dozens of incidents have occurred at the new fit-for-purpose centre that you said last year would provide better safety for staff and ultimately a safer community for all Victorians; with over 37 recent incidents, how many of the inmates have been moved to other prison facilities?

Enver ERDOGAN (Northern Metropolitan – Minister for Corrections, Minister for Youth Justice, Minister for Victim Support) (12:19): I thank Mr Davis for his supplementary. I reject the premise of that question, because they are unsubstantiated claims and they are just factually untrue. But in relation to our Cherry Creek facility, we are engaging the young people. We have been up-front that it is a more complex cohort; that is what Cherry Creek is designed to do. I notice that you did refer to the Report on Government Services, and that is an important statistic to focus on, but our government has been successful in diverting a lot of people away from the criminal justice system. That is where we can get the best outcome – if young people avoid contact with the criminal justice system, then they will not show up in the statistics. We have the lowest number of young people in custody. In relation to the Report on Government Services, there is a significant lag. I know those opposite are not good with numbers, but let me tell you about the numbers. Those statistics are based on what happened in 2021. Our Cherry Creek facility was only opened late last year, if you follow the news, so the results for Cherry Creek – we will see the results. It is intensive treatment.

David Davis: On a point of order, President, I very specifically went to the 37 recent incidents and asked how many of the inmates have been moved to other prison facilities, and the minister has not answered in any way how many have been moved.

The PRESIDENT: Order! The minister was relevant to the question.