Lidia Thorpe (Victoria, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Once again, we're seeing politicians across the country spread fear and hate, and calling for more kids to be locked up. The federal coalition and some state Labor governments are undermining progress on raising the age. These politicians tell the public that jailing children will keep communities safe, knowing this is a lie. The evidence shows that jailing kids traumatises and damages them and that they often become more of a risk to the community throughout their lives. Last week, a new report in Queensland showed that over 90 per cent of young people who'd been in detention committed another offence within 12 months of their release. The figures are similar in other states. To keep one child in youth detention can cost over a million dollars a year. Governments are wasting billions each Once again, we're swseeingyear harming kids and making communities less safe in the long run.

There are plenty of successful First Peoples led diversion programs around the country that are keeping kids connected with culture and community and avoiding contact with police and prisons. We could do so much better if the sort of money governments spend on locking kids up were instead invested in diversion programs and support services that actually work. With several state elections coming up, we will see more fearmongering and more races to the bottom, but remember: these politicians don't care about kids. They don't care about communities. They only care about the votes that they think they can win by creating more fear. It's up to all of us to call that out every time. Kids belong in families and communities, not in prisons.