Opinion Piece – “Gold Standard Early Intervention?” Or Gold-Plated Bureaucracy?

14 April 2025

 The first quarter of the year is now well behind us and while some of the promised youth crime laws have changed, you can’t dress up the current crime statistics, they still resemble a pig in lipstick.

The latest announcement from the Queensland LNP Government touts a $50 million cash splash on a “Kickstarter” program aimed at early intervention to tackle youth crime before it starts. On the surface, this might seem like a proactive step, but there are some troubling similarities to the failed programs of the previous Labor Government that can’t be ignored.

We all know every political party creates their own buzz words and slogans to sell their policy and the LNP is no different. “Gold Standard Early Intervention” seems to be the flavour of choice, but we’re yet to see the details of this policy fleshed out. Previous comments from the Youth Justice Minister suggest that she is listening to the experts, and that leaves many of us with serious concerns.

We’re told this initiative will fund programs offering education, life skills, and support to prevent young people from “veering into” a life of crime. Now I’ll be the first to agree, every child needs those essential ingredients to ensure a recipe for success as they navigate their adolescent years. But the real question is: who will be influencing or writing the criteria for these programs? Or assessing the tender process?

The primary responsibility for raising a child should lie with their parents and immediate family. Unfortunately, with the breakdown of the family unit and the slow erosion of parental rights, the previous State Government, along with its departments, has by design stepped in to assume the role of primary caregiver for many of our state’s troubled youth-turned-criminals.

Education, discipline, moral guidance, and support should start at home. But in the absence of a stable family environment, the so-called experts have been given free reign with these children, often choosing to place them in ‘resi-care’ housing where staff are expected to manage some of Queensland’s worst recidivist offenders armed with nothing more than verbal de-escalation techniques. In my opinion, these experts have played a major role in creating the mess we have today.

The challenge for the incoming government will be dealing with the departments they’ve inherited, the so-called experts blinded by ideology, and the multitude of professionals within the “industry” who have led us to the position we have today.

This government is at a crossroads. Townsville is expecting leadership that will do what it takes to turn the tide on youth crime, but first they’ll need to turn their backs on the double-degree done-nothings who got us here in the first place.

-END-