'Underclass of Australians': youth crime laws slammed

Australia has come under fire again for breaching its human rights obligations to children amid a national crackdown on youth crime.

The United Nations has criticised the Queensland government's latest round of "adult crime, adult time" laws, saying they threaten to create an "underclass of Australians".

Queensland plans to bolster its youth crime laws, with 20 more offences to carry lengthy sentences.

New offences include sexual assault and rape, attempt to murder, kidnapping, arson and attempted robbery.

A national crackdown on juvenile offenders came under the spotlight when Queensland's Liberal National government quickly passed "adult crime, adult time" laws after its election win in 2024.

They ensured children as young as 10 can serve a life sentence for murder and manslaughter, while prison time for offences such as grievous bodily harm doubled.

It came after several serious crimes, including a teenager who was charged with attempted murder following the alleged stabbing attack on a supermarket worker in Ipswich.

The United Nations criticised the state government for the controversial laws at the time, calling it a "flagrant disregard" for children's human rights.

The LNP government also earned the ire of advocates over the laws because of concerns the state's youth justice system would be overwhelmed.

Queensland locks up more children than any other jurisdiction, according to a report by the state's Child Death Review.

But the LNP government has rolled out the second tranche of youth crime laws, sparking more outrage.

The laws disproportionately impact Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, international human rights experts say.

"Children are suffering undue harm to their safety and well-being, as well as to their educational and life prospects as a result of short-sighted approaches to youth criminality and detention," the United Nations' Alice Jill Edwards and Albert K Barume said.

The two UN human rights experts have written a letter to Australian authorities expressing concerns about the expansion of Queensland's "adult crime, adult time" laws.

They said the amended laws would harm the lives of Aboriginal children and urged members of the state parliament to vote against the bill.

"The first goal should always be keeping children out of prison," the experts said.

"We are extremely concerned that present approaches are creating a future underclass of Australians."

Queensland parliament is set to continue debating the amended laws which are expected to pass late on Wednesday.

Other states and territories have focused on youth crime amid Queensland's crackdown.

The Northern Territory is strengthening its bail laws following the fatal stabbing of a 71-year-old Darwin store owner allegedly at the hands of a teenager.

Victoria recently removed remand as a last resort for children while NSW made it harder for 14 to 18-year-olds to be released on serious charges while out on bail for similar offences.

The UN experts said Australia might be violating its international obligations to children with Queensland's harsh criminal laws and the nation's criminal age of responsibility, which is 10 in the Sunshine State and the Northern Territory and 14 in other states.