2 October 2013
JustSpeak

Including 17-year-olds in Youth Justice System a Strong Investment

Documents released to JustSpeak today under the Official Information Act show that government agencies have costed raising the youth court age to 17 at a maximum of $66.1m a year. JustSpeak spokesperson Danielle Kelly says, “This would be a great investment in lower crime rates and safer communities.”

“To put this amount in perspective, the Government spends $753.3 million a year on running prisons,” Danielle says. “For the 2014 Budget, we need to think about what future New Zealand wants. JustSpeak believes that raising the youth court age to allow 17-year-olds access to youth justice would be great value for money. Evidence repeatedly shows that diverting young people from the adult justice system reduces reoffending. This investment is likely to save money in the long run.”

“Our justice system is in need of transformation. The Government has an opportunity to make New Zealand a fairer place and improve safety by giving all youth access to youth courts,” Danielle says. “The Government has set aside an allocation of $1 billion for new initiatives in next year’s Budget. Now that New Zealand is recovering from the 2008 financial crisis, and the Canterbury rebuild is starting to stimulate the economy, there is now room for strong investment in our justice sector to avoid costs in future years. The case for change has never been stronger.”

“If providing a more comprehensive youth justice system results in a 10% decrease in offending costs in the future, the savings in the justice sector could be as high as $370m per year in the long run - a strong return on investment.”

Raising the age of the youth court is more costly, short-term, due to increased resources to address root causes of offending. Action plans for youth are more thorough, victims are offered opportunities to address the offender, and treatment for alcohol and drug dependence may be provided. These all help reduce reoffending, and have been associated with a large reduction in youth crime over the last twenty years.

In July this year, JustSpeak launched a campaign to raise the age of the youth court jurisdiction to 17. Raising the age of the youth court to 17 has the support of many organisations such as UNICEF, Family Works, Presbyterian Support, AMNESTY, PILLARS, PPTA, Youthline, Prison Fellowship, Anglican Church, Pathways Charitable Group, ACYA-Action for Children & Youth Aotearoa, and Key Assets.

JustSpeak.org.nz

Appendix: Estimated Fiscal Impact of Increasing Youth Court Age to 17

Source: “Updating the Children, Young Persons, and their Families Act 1989: Part A - Operational and Cost Implications”, Cabinet Paper from the Office of the Minister for Social Development and Employment, 2007.

ENDS

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