Phillip Thompson (Herbert, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Townsville's crime problem has gone unaddressed for so long I am now receiving letters from children worried about their own safety. Recently, 12-year-old Ryley wrote to me and wanted me to share her story with the House: 'Dear Philip, I am a 12-year-old girl from Townsville and have taken it upon me that kids that are stealing cars aren't being dealt with properly. This matter is hurting families who have lost someone from these silly kids that get away with it because the judges can't say no to a child or teenager. If it were their or your family getting hurt, or even killed, I am sure you would want them to be put away. The only reason it is getting worse is because no-one is doing anything and these kids think they can get away with it. From all this going on, I sometimes don't feel safe or I feel scared that it will happen to someone I love or, worse, me. You just have to think: what would your children be living like in the future? I have been watching the news lately and I have seen how miserable these families are and it is making feel so annoyed that I have come to write this. I hope you will take this into mind and think about what would happen if your family had an incident like these kids in cars?' Ryley, you're right. We need to be doing better, we need to be doing better, and I call on the state to make the appropriate changes and tougher changes to Queensland's Youth Justice Act.