Communique - IMAC meeting 23 September 2024
The IMAC held its monthly meeting on Monday 23 September.
The key focus of this meeting was to discuss and consider the provision of advice to government nearing 12 months of engagement and observations by IMAC.
The IMAC wrote to the (former) Queensland Premier and Attorney-General to provide advice on various issues that align with the three key focus areas of our work plan.
Our advice focused on the following areas:
- increasing community consultation on justice initiatives and investment
- extending funding timelines for services
- improving information-sharing across government agencies
- introducing a ‘victim-navigator’ model
- expanding specialised services for marginalised groups
- advocating for legislative amendments to ensure greater consistency and support for victims
- diversifying sentencing options and rehabilitation efforts to reduce recidivism, with a focus on addressing intergenerational harm to children of incarcerated parents.
We discussed phasing components of our workplan, specifically focusing on projects relating to our first focus area (enhancing victim supports and experiences) and mapped specific projects against a desired timeframe for delivery.
We reflected on our recent visit to Townsville. We discussed key insights and overarching themes gained from the trip and how these will help shape our work moving forward.
We discussed our upcoming visit to Cherbourg from 17 to 19 November 2024. We look forward to meeting with local organisations to learn about their efforts to reduce crime, gain a deeper understanding of challenges and participate in a tour of the Ration Shed to learn about the community’s cultural history.
We discussed the recently released Cleveland Youth Detention Centre inspection report: Focus on separation due to staff shortages that includes 15 recommendations relevant to our work plan. Members endorse all recommendations and outline this support in the IMAC advice to government.
We discussed the Queensland Family and Child Commission’s report on Exiting Youth Detention: Preventing crime by improving post-release support, highlighting particular concerns around the effectiveness of support provided to young people leaving detention in reducing re-offending rates. Members agreed with the Principal Commissioner’s assessment that the ‘current model’ is inadequate and endorsed the recommendation for a 12-month transition program.