
Chief minister insists causes of crime being addressed
The Country Liberal Party government's first budget for the Northern Territory delivered on Tuesday features a record $1.34 billion spend on police, corrections and justice.
Corrections services will get more than $500 million to ensure extra beds and services to cope with a boosted jail population resulting from the tougher bail laws, with youth offenders mainly impacted.
The government has been criticised by the Labor opposition and justice reform groups for taking a punitive approach to crime rather than tackling its root causes.
But Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro insists her government is taking decisive action to break the cycle of crime by addressing its causes through a package of early intervention, education, family support and housing initiatives in the budget.
"You don't fix crime by only responding after it happens. You prevent it by investing in addressing the root causes of crime," she said in a statement on Tuesday.
The budget had a strong emphasis on youth engagement, family safety and community wellbeing, she said.
Ms Finocchiaro said her government was driving reforms to improve school attendance and hold parents accountable for ensuring children attend.
That involved referring parents to income support if they deprived their children of education, school attendance officers issuing infringement notices for chronic non-attendance and more school-based police officers to promote safety.
The budget also delivers $204 million for family support services and $20.9 million for child protection, $138.6 million for out-of-home care and $73.2 million to support homelessness services.
It includes $6.6 million per annum in ongoing funding for the Circuit Breaker program operating in Darwin, Alice Springs and Katherine.
This initiative targets young people aged 10 to 17 who are at risk of entering the youth justice or child protection systems, offering case management and family support, supervised accommodation where needed, local supervision to keep at-risk youth off the streets and keeping kids in school and families accountable.
To tackle overcrowding and poor housing conditions the government is investing in up to 2700 new homes and a major repairs and maintenance program under the jointly funded $4 billion remote housing agreement.
A much-loved Darwin store owner's fatal stabbing on April 23 inspired what are being billed as Australia's toughest bail laws.
The NT government brought in the reforms barely a week after 71-year-old Linford Feick was allegedly stabbed to death by a teenager who was on bail for "serious matters" and has since been charged with murder.
When the bail laws were passed Opposition Leader Selena Uibo said Labor would support them "in good faith" but they were a "band-aid solution".
Justice Reform Initiative executive director Mindy Sotiri said the record spend on law and order was "a clear example of getting the policy and resource settings completely wrong".
"The NT remains Australia's most imprisoned jurisdiction, with an incarceration rate three times greater than anywhere else in Australia – and that number continues to rise due to punitive legislative settings," she said.
More than $500 million will go to one territory's prison system to keep pace with tough new bail laws but the chief minister insists her government is also addressing the root causes of crime.
The Country Liberal Party government's first budget for the Northern Territory delivered on Tuesday features a record $1.34 billion spend on police, corrections and justice.
Corrections services will get more than $500 million to ensure extra beds and services to cope with a boosted jail population resulting from the tougher bail laws, with youth offenders mainly impacted.
The government has been criticised by the Labor opposition and justice reform groups for taking a punitive approach to crime rather than tackling its root causes.
But Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro insists her government is taking decisive action to break the cycle of crime by addressing its causes through a package of early intervention, education, family support and housing initiatives in the budget.
"You don't fix crime by only responding after it happens. You prevent it by investing in addressing the root causes of crime," she said in a statement on Tuesday.
The budget had a strong emphasis on youth engagement, family safety and community wellbeing, she said.
Ms Finocchiaro said her government was driving reforms to improve school attendance and hold parents accountable for ensuring children attend.
That involved referring parents to income support if they deprived their children of education, school attendance officers issuing infringement notices for chronic non-attendance and more school-based police officers to promote safety.
The budget also delivers $204 million for family support services and $20.9 million for child protection, $138.6 million for out-of-home care and $73.2 million to support homelessness services.
It includes $6.6 million per annum in ongoing funding for the Circuit Breaker program operating in Darwin, Alice Springs and Katherine.
This initiative targets young people aged 10 to 17 who are at risk of entering the youth justice or child protection systems, offering case management and family support, supervised accommodation where needed, local supervision to keep at-risk youth off the streets and keeping kids in school and families accountable.
To tackle overcrowding and poor housing conditions the government is investing in up to 2700 new homes and a major repairs and maintenance program under the jointly funded $4 billion remote housing agreement.
A much-loved Darwin store owner's fatal stabbing on April 23 inspired what are being billed as Australia's toughest bail laws.
The NT government brought in the reforms barely a week after 71-year-old Linford Feick was allegedly stabbed to death by a teenager who was on bail for "serious matters" and has since been charged with murder.
When the bail laws were passed Opposition Leader Selena Uibo said Labor would support them "in good faith" but they were a "band-aid solution".
Justice Reform Initiative executive director Mindy Sotiri said the record spend on law and order was "a clear example of getting the policy and resource settings completely wrong".
"The NT remains Australia's most imprisoned jurisdiction, with an incarceration rate three times greater than anywhere else in Australia – and that number continues to rise due to punitive legislative settings," she said.
More than $500 million will go to one territory's prison system to keep pace with tough new bail laws but the chief minister insists her government is also addressing the root causes of crime.
The Country Liberal Party government's first budget for the Northern Territory delivered on Tuesday features a record $1.34 billion spend on police, corrections and justice.
Corrections services will get more than $500 million to ensure extra beds and services to cope with a boosted jail population resulting from the tougher bail laws, with youth offenders mainly impacted.
The government has been criticised by the Labor opposition and justice reform groups for taking a punitive approach to crime rather than tackling its root causes.
But Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro insists her government is taking decisive action to break the cycle of crime by addressing its causes through a package of early intervention, education, family support and housing initiatives in the budget.
"You don't fix crime by only responding after it happens. You prevent it by investing in addressing the root causes of crime," she said in a statement on Tuesday.
The budget had a strong emphasis on youth engagement, family safety and community wellbeing, she said.
Ms Finocchiaro said her government was driving reforms to improve school attendance and hold parents accountable for ensuring children attend.
That involved referring parents to income support if they deprived their children of education, school attendance officers issuing infringement notices for chronic non-attendance and more school-based police officers to promote safety.
The budget also delivers $204 million for family support services and $20.9 million for child protection, $138.6 million for out-of-home care and $73.2 million to support homelessness services.
It includes $6.6 million per annum in ongoing funding for the Circuit Breaker program operating in Darwin, Alice Springs and Katherine.
This initiative targets young people aged 10 to 17 who are at risk of entering the youth justice or child protection systems, offering case management and family support, supervised accommodation where needed, local supervision to keep at-risk youth off the streets and keeping kids in school and families accountable.
To tackle overcrowding and poor housing conditions the government is investing in up to 2700 new homes and a major repairs and maintenance program under the jointly funded $4 billion remote housing agreement.
A much-loved Darwin store owner's fatal stabbing on April 23 inspired what are being billed as Australia's toughest bail laws.
The NT government brought in the reforms barely a week after 71-year-old Linford Feick was allegedly stabbed to death by a teenager who was on bail for "serious matters" and has since been charged with murder.
When the bail laws were passed Opposition Leader Selena Uibo said Labor would support them "in good faith" but they were a "band-aid solution".
Justice Reform Initiative executive director Mindy Sotiri said the record spend on law and order was "a clear example of getting the policy and resource settings completely wrong".
"The NT remains Australia's most imprisoned jurisdiction, with an incarceration rate three times greater than anywhere else in Australia – and that number continues to rise due to punitive legislative settings," she said.
More than $500 million will go to one territory's prison system to keep pace with tough new bail laws but the chief minister insists her government is also addressing the root causes of crime.
The Country Liberal Party government's first budget for the Northern Territory delivered on Tuesday features a record $1.34 billion spend on police, corrections and justice.
Corrections services will get more than $500 million to ensure extra beds and services to cope with a boosted jail population resulting from the tougher bail laws, with youth offenders mainly impacted.
The government has been criticised by the Labor opposition and justice reform groups for taking a punitive approach to crime rather than tackling its root causes.
But Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro insists her government is taking decisive action to break the cycle of crime by addressing its causes through a package of early intervention, education, family support and housing initiatives in the budget.
"You don't fix crime by only responding after it happens. You prevent it by investing in addressing the root causes of crime," she said in a statement on Tuesday.
The budget had a strong emphasis on youth engagement, family safety and community wellbeing, she said.
Ms Finocchiaro said her government was driving reforms to improve school attendance and hold parents accountable for ensuring children attend.
That involved referring parents to income support if they deprived their children of education, school attendance officers issuing infringement notices for chronic non-attendance and more school-based police officers to promote safety.
The budget also delivers $204 million for family support services and $20.9 million for child protection, $138.6 million for out-of-home care and $73.2 million to support homelessness services.
It includes $6.6 million per annum in ongoing funding for the Circuit Breaker program operating in Darwin, Alice Springs and Katherine.
This initiative targets young people aged 10 to 17 who are at risk of entering the youth justice or child protection systems, offering case management and family support, supervised accommodation where needed, local supervision to keep at-risk youth off the streets and keeping kids in school and families accountable.
To tackle overcrowding and poor housing conditions the government is investing in up to 2700 new homes and a major repairs and maintenance program under the jointly funded $4 billion remote housing agreement.
A much-loved Darwin store owner's fatal stabbing on April 23 inspired what are being billed as Australia's toughest bail laws.
The NT government brought in the reforms barely a week after 71-year-old Linford Feick was allegedly stabbed to death by a teenager who was on bail for "serious matters" and has since been charged with murder.
When the bail laws were passed Opposition Leader Selena Uibo said Labor would support them "in good faith" but they were a "band-aid solution".
Justice Reform Initiative executive director Mindy Sotiri said the record spend on law and order was "a clear example of getting the policy and resource settings completely wrong".
"The NT remains Australia's most imprisoned jurisdiction, with an incarceration rate three times greater than anywhere else in Australia – and that number continues to rise due to punitive legislative settings," she said.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

ABC News
3 hours ago
- ABC News
RSPCA's Andrea Dawkins responds to announcement Tasmania's greyhound racing industry will end
Andrea Dawkins I heard about it on Saturday evening and my response was, as for many animal welfare advocates in Tasmania and indeed around the country, it was tears. I could not believe it. I had to call the person who sent me the message to confirm it and it still took me a minute to actually let it sink in that it could be real because there's very, very few days like that as an animal welfare advocate. We don't get many wins and this is considered to be quite the victory because it took a lot to get either Labor or Liberal to break ranks on greyhound racing and I applaud that decision. Ryk Goddard It's not the end of greyhound racing if the greyhound racing industry can fund itself. Do you think it's likely to continue? Andrea Dawkins I don't think it is likely to continue. I mean, that's probably more of a question for Saul Eslake or an economist, but it appears to me from everything that I've read and also from the media release from Jeremy Rockliff on the weekend that it would be phased out. Ryk Goddard What support have they talked about providing both for the industry and also welfare for dogs as the industry ends so there isn't just a mass euthanasia? Do you have any details? Andrea Dawkins No, we don't have any details yet and that's what that parliamentary committee would be set up to investigate. Sean Carroll, the Commissioner for Racing Integrity, it would be very important to have him at that table and other people with significant positions of power, but of course we need to make sure it's a just transition, not just for animal welfare advocates and organisations who'd be rehoming the dogs, but also for participants in the industry. People like the RSPCA, those who work here and the broader animal welfare ecosystem, we've got a social mission. Our mission is not at all costs to get what we want. It's to wrap services around everybody who needs them, including the people in the industry as they exit. It's very, very important that the community understand that. Ryk Goddard Lachlan from Gilston Bay said greyhound racing in Tasmania is not an industrial complex like New South Wales. It's more like Darryl Kerrigan from the castle and he says overwhelming majority of people love their dogs. Andrea Dawkins That's correct. I completely agree. It's not that machine. It's still considered an industry by Tas Racing, but certainly my interaction with those owners and trainers as they're surrendering dogs to us, it's absolutely more like that mum and dad kind of backyard. But honestly, it's not fit for purpose for those dogs. They might love them, but it's a very different kind of version of animal welfare than the one that we hold as the highest and we expect those people to be some of the first. If there is a just transition and a package available to be able to avail themselves of those packages. Ryk Goddard Andrew Dawkins, CEO of RSPCA Tasmania and until recently a Launceston City Councillor. Do you have any reasons why you stepped down last week? Andrea Dawkins I just woke up on Thursday morning and I knew it was my time. I looked back on my call. Ryk Goddard Really? It was that sudden? Andrea Dawkins Look, it was. I'd been leading up to it for some time, knowing that I wasn't going to contest again and knowing that I wanted someone to take my place and give them a chance to embed themselves, to have an opportunity to push through that next election. But after 10 years and trying to hold all of those complex issues, everybody's concerns and the way that I needed to advocate for my community, as well as being the CEO of the RSPCA, when I actually knew that greyhounds were going to need me. In fact, when people contacted me and said, why have you stepped down? I said, I just woke up and knew that I needed to be here to help greyhounds. And then three days later, the news breaks. So maybe it was some sort of precognition. Ryk Goddard What would be your next target as the RSPCA? Andrea Dawkins Oh, gee, it's pretty early days for that. I mean, we do have an advocacy agenda. There's still pets in rentals. There's still some sitting in Parliament, as is the amendments to the Dog Control Act and Animal Welfare Act around the dog regulations, which would mean there'd be a cap on breeders. So there's still some really important work that got stuck with this last election. But we're still very concerned about shooting ducks in Ramsar wetlands and a number of other issues. So cat management is not under control in Tasmania. As an animal welfare advocate in this role, I will never have a sperm in it.

Sky News AU
6 hours ago
- Sky News AU
‘Can't have protesters taking over our streets': concerns over out of hand protests
Shadow Attorney-General Julian Leeser accuses the government of showing weakness in handling recent protests in Sydney and Melbourne. 'A national symbol of unity should not be hijacked for causes that are of division,' Mr Leeser said. 'The Victorian Labor government has continued to show weakness. 'We can't have protestors of the far right, of the far left, of the Islamist variety taking over our streets.'

Sky News AU
7 hours ago
- Sky News AU
‘A boyhood fantasy': Albanese slammed over push to recognise Palestine
Former Labor MP Michael Danby accuses Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of pursuing a 'boyhood fantasy' in recognising Palestine. "This is a boyhood fantasy of Albos to recognise the Palestinian cause,' Mr Danby told Sky News host Andrew Bolt. 'It's about preselection votes, even more important than actual votes. 'Israelis can disagree with Netanyahu as much as they like, but they're very doubtful about this extreme Palestinian point of view."