Michelle Landry (Capricornia, National Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Manufacturing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Attorney-General. My home state of Queensland has faced a devastating wave of youth crime. Given the very strong concern in my home state and around Australia about youth crime, will the Attorney-General now reverse the Albanese government's commitment to raise the age of criminal responsibility at a Commonwealth level and encourage state governments to do the same?

Mark Dreyfus (Isaacs, Australian Labor Party, Cabinet Secretary) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for her question. Youth crime is of course a matter that every single person in this chamber should be rightly concerned about. Certainly our government is very concerned about youth crime, very concerned about policing practice and very concerned about the laws which deal with youth crime and underlie prosecution for youth crime in our country, just as we're concerned with the detention of our young people in youth detention centres.

I fear that the member has not understood the discussion. I fear that the member has not understood the matter which she raised in her question about raising the age of criminal responsibility. The question of raising the age of criminal responsibility has been a matter of serious discussion—not a matter of serious discussion for many of those opposite but a matter of serious discussion in the criminal justice system. All Attorneys-General are concerned with this, and that's why the matter of raising the age of criminal responsibility was placed on the agenda of the Standing Council of Attorneys-General when I recreated the Standing Council of Attorneys-General, which had been abolished by the former government, upon us coming to government in May last year.

We will continue to discuss the question of raising the age of criminal responsibility. I note that some state and territory governments have already legislated to raise the age of criminal responsibility. Other state or territory governments have announced their intention to raise the age of criminal responsibility. Overwhelmingly this is a matter that concerns state and territory governments because overwhelmingly it is not—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Herbert will cease interjecting.

Mark Dreyfus (Isaacs, Australian Labor Party, Cabinet Secretary) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I know that those opposite have got no actual interest in this subject. I include in this movement of the age of criminal responsibility the movement of the Liberal government in Tasmania, where they have changed—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Attorney-General will pause. I'll hear from the Leader of the Opposition.

Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On relevance, the Attorney-General is advocating an increase in the age of criminal responsibility, and he should—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Resume your seat. The Leader of the Opposition is entitled to raise a point of order, but the minister is directly referring to the age of criminal responsibility. I'll listen carefully to make sure that he continues to be relevant. He has the call for 28 seconds.

Mark Dreyfus (Isaacs, Australian Labor Party, Cabinet Secretary) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There was a false premise in the question I was asked, and there's another false premise that's been raised by the Leader of the Opposition in his non-point of order. The matter will continue to be discussed in the Standing Council of Attorneys-General.