GPS monitors no match for hardcore youth offenders

12 February 2024

Hinchinbrook MP and Katter’s Australian Party (KAP) Deputy Leader, Nick Dametto has labelled calls by the Queensland Police Commissioner to ‘revisit’ GPS monitoring devices and expand wanding powers as an inept demonstration of leadership.

The Hinchinbrook MP said he was frustrated by the State Labor Government’s mixed messaging on youth crime as well as meek statements made by back slapping bureaucrats including the Police Commissioner.

“It’s no wonder the public are fed up and can’t wait to see the last of this Labor Government when the election comes in October,” Mr Dametto said.

“I’d be embarrassed as a police officer to hear my boss spruiking GPS monitoring devices and greater wanding powers as possible solutions to youth crime.

“The Commissioner claims that Queensland is ‘leading the nation” when it comes to ‘innovative strategies to reduce youth offending’ but it’s pretty hard to claim a solution is innovative when you’re just recycling past failures and making no impact on the issue at hand.

“Police Minister Mark Ryan said the State Labor Government was open to hearing new solutions and strategies on youth crime, yet we delivered him KAP’s Relocation Sentencing Policy back in August last year and received zero response.

“Since August last year we’ve been given nothing but the runaround from this Government which shows they are not really that serious about reducing youth crime.

“The previous Premier told us that Relocation Sentencing was being considered, then Steven Miles as Deputy Premier said it was something they were looking into, but then only a few weeks ago Youth Justice Minister Di Farmer said it was too expensive, and now we’re hearing from Premier Miles that he’ll write a blank cheque to curb youth crime, so what is it?

“There needs to be a stop on blindly pouring funds into ineffective measures and more focus on deterring  young offenders by creating incarceration methods focused on proper rehabilitation.

“KAP’s policy wasn’t just created overnight. Relocation Sentencing was a concept that took years to build and is designed specifically to target hard nut offenders in hot spots such as Townsville, Cairns and Mount Isa.

“The policy has received strong backing from the community as well as the North Queensland local governments of Mareeba, Cairns and Townsville, and those people deserve to be listened to as the ones on the ground battling this war every day.

“Decision makers in Brisbane need to spend more time on the north side of the Tropic of Capricorn and get outside their inner-city shells to see how Relocation Sentencing could really work.

“Just because the city dwellers don’t understand it doesn’t mean it isn’t a viable solution, and without even doing the costings I could guarantee it’s cheaper than the myriad of flaccid youth crime measures we’re currently seeing.”

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*KAP’s Relocation Sentencing Policy can be found here:https://kap.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/KAP-Relocation-Sentencing-Policy-2.pdf