David Shoebridge (NSW, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Albanese government can't continue to turn away while the states and territories lock up and abuse children. Despite decades of evidence, inquiries, reports and recommendations regarding the appalling abuse suffered by children in detention facilities, we've seen no national plan for reform and no action to fund or implement evidence based alternatives. In just the last few days, fresh evidence has emerged of the horrific conditions that children have been exposed to in Perth's Banksia Hill youth detention centre. Western Australia's Inspector of Custodial Services warns that the prison is in a state of emergency, with appalling rates of self-harm and attempted suicides and stretched mental healthcare services. The situation in Queensland is also in crisis, with First Nations children vastly overrepresented and subjected to inhumane, abusive conditions. Of approximately 291 children in prison in Queensland right now, 195 are Indigenous. That's 67 per cent. In the Northern Territory's Don Dale and Alice Springs youth detention centres, more than 90 per cent of imprisoned children are Indigenous, and on some days it's 100 per cent.

Children's Commissioner Anne Hollonds states that youth justice across Australia is in a state of 'crisis', and she points out that the jurisdictions with the laws toughest on crime have the most problems with youth offending. These things are connected, and I commend her for her national review. The system is brutal and it's broken. Instead of being helped and healed, kids in prison are being subjected to abusive conditions and inhumane treatment, which exacerbates their trauma. I recognise the vital work of organisations such as the Aboriginal Legal Service of WA and Social Reinvestment WA, who are working collectively for an effective and connected approach to justice. But they all need more funding and support. I call on the federal Attorney-General to end his silence, put in the funds and show the national leadership needed.