AMA and Law Council say raising age from 10 will help reduce Indigenous incarceration and meet international obligations

This article is more than 9 months old

This article is more than 9 months old

The Australian Medical Association has joined a Law Council of Australia push to increase the minimum age of criminal responsibility to 14 to prevent the jailing of children as young as 10.

In a joint policy statement, to be released on Tuesday, the country’s peak medical and legal bodies argue that increasing the age to 14 will help reduce Indigenous incarceration rates and fulfil international law obligations.

The reform is being considered by a working group of the Council of Attorneys General but is opposed by the federal attorney general, Christian Porter.

Under the current law, children aged between 10 and 14 are presumed to be incapable of the intent to commit a criminal act, but prosecutors can push for a criminal conviction if they can show a child knew his or her actions were morally wrong.

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The AMA president, Tony Bartone, said incarceration of children was “unacceptable” and many were the victims of abuse and neglect and had mental health conditions, cognitive impairments and other significant challenges.

“Raising the age of criminal responsibility will prevent the unnecessary criminalisation of vulnerable children,” he said.

The law council president, Arthur Moses, said Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people were 23 times more likely to be in detention than non-Indigenous young people, and early contact with the criminal justice system then increased the chances of re-incarceration.

“The attorneys general know this is the case,” he said. “It is time that they showed some courage and leadership to implement these changes. Our children should not be used as political footballs in a law-and-order auction.”

The policy statement argued that the “large majority” of children affected by the low age of criminal responsibility “are not serious offenders”.

“In countries where the [minimum age] is 14 years or higher, research indicates there are no negative consequences to be seen in terms of crime rates,” it said.

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In the Northern Territory, the royal commission into Don Dale and youth detention recommended raising the age to 12 years old and 14 for detention.

In July, the Senate voted down a push by Labor and the Greens to call for an increase in the minimum age of criminal responsibility to 14.

The reform is supported by Amnesty International, Save the Children, the United Nations and Western Australia, which placed it on the agenda at the Council of Attorneys General.

In November, the council noted there was “strong interest” in the issue and committed to conduct consultation before a report due in 2020.

Porter said he was “on record as saying I’m not overly enthusiastic about that reform”. He noted there were numerous options, including to lift the age to 14 with “no exceptions” or to follow other jurisdictions and make exceptions for “very serious criminal offences”.

Porter argued that “the present system works relatively well” and “allows flexibility” for “instances where it is appropriate to prosecute people who’ve been under the age of 14 for very serious offences”.