Phillip Thompson (Herbert, Liberal National Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Defence) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Only the state government has the power to change the Queensland youth justice legislation, and the Miles Labor government is refusing to do so. They refuse to enforce an appropriate punishment for bad behaviour and refuse to remove detention as a last resort from the Youth Justice Act. That's why, at the federal level, the former coalition government introduced the Safer Communities Fund, a highly successful program with the benefits being realised across the country.

In his very first budget, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese cut this fund and, as a result, all the programs created under it. We must bring back the Safer Communities Fund to deter at-risk youth from a life of crime. The Safer Communities Fund was incredibly successful, providing over $200 million in funding through over 600 grants to establish early intervention programs and crime prevention infrastructure nationwide. Across Australia, programs were established to offer young people a safe space to keep engaged and reduce the risk of offending, reoffending, or antisocial behaviour. There is no doubt this program was a success, and our community of Townsville has seen firsthand the benefits of this.

One fantastic example is Community Gro's Youth Hub, which I visited again a couple of weeks ago. This hub provides our at-risk youth with a safe place to drop in and connect with culture and support services. It has supported more than 80 young people, from participants learning valuable life skills to gaining full-time employment. But all good things came to an end under the Prime Minister. He abolished the Safer Communities Fund, which cut the funding source for the hub. With this and any alternative funding options off the table, the youth hub will close its doors at the end of April, potentially taking away the only safe space that more than 80 of our at-risk youth have. It's hard to imagine what a young, vulnerable child from a very rough upbringing must be thinking when they hear this news—a child who had finally found a safe place to connect, learn and be set on a path to success now having had that safe space taken away from them. That is the harsh reality of what the end of this funding means for our at-risk youth.

Townsville locals do not need to be subjected to violence, stealing, and living in a constant state of fear, but the weak state Labor government continues to fail to do its job, which is why we took action. We provided the Safer Communities Fund so that we could make a difference at the federal level when we were in government. The Albanese Labor government must not shut the doors on our nation's at-risk youth. It must bring back the Safer Communities Fund.