Change the Record and the Human Rights Law Centre welcome the ACT raising the minimum age of criminal responsibility to 14, and call for all Australian Governments to raise the age to at least
14 with no exceptions.

From today children under the age of 14 in the ACT can not generally be charged, prosecuted, or imprisoned under the criminal legal system. The ACT is the first — and so far only — jurisdiction in Australia to raise the age above 12.

In 2023, the ACT Government passed the Justice (Age of Criminal Responsibility) Legislation Amendment Bill 2023, which raised the age in two stages: from 10 to 12 in November 2023, and now to 14 in July 2025.

This reform follows years of sustained advocacy from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders, legal and medical experts, and community organisations. For decades, evidence has shown that early contact
with the criminal legal system significantly increases the likelihood of ongoing involvement with police andthe prison system, and contributes to poorer health, education and wellbeing outcomes.

This change brings the ACT closer to meeting international human rights obligations. We call on the government to make a plan to remove the exceptions that apply to some offences, in line with United Nations benchmarks. Despite the ACT’s progress, and the further progress we hope to see, most other Australian jurisdictions continue to criminalise children as young as 10 — two full years younger than the internationally accepted minimum. The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child
recommended in 2019 that Australia raise the age to 14 “without exception,” citing clear evidence that children aged 10 to 13 lack the developmental capacity to be held criminally responsible in line with international juvenile justice principles.

Quotes attributable to Jade Lane, CEO, Change the Record:

“Every child deserves to grow with connection, not be locked up in prison cells. The ACT reforms are a
crucial step toward choosing care over cruelty, especially for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children
who are disproportionately targeted by police and the so-called justice system.

“The ACT has shown there is a better way that respects the human rights of children, while many governments continue to double down on harmful, punitive and discriminatory “youth justice” policies in heartbreaking trends across the country.

“Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities have long called for genuine action to stop the
over-incarceration of our children. This change responds to those calls, it’s time for all jurisdictions to
follow suit and the federal government to act if they fail to.

“This change in the ACT signals a well overdue time to invest in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children to thrive, not trap them in cycles of criminalisation.

“We urge all states and territories to do the right thing and raise the age of criminal responsibility to 14 without exception. Kids deserve to have a childhood free from cages and isolation, to grow and thrive with their human rights respected.

“Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are being removed from their communities and denied their right to cultural connection through so-called youth justice policies at an alarming rate. Raising the age is an important step toward preventing and putting an end to a continuation of stolen generations in the present.”

Quotes attributable to Maggie Munn, First Nations Director, Human Rights Law Centre:

“Our kids deserve to thrive, not be caged in police watch houses and prison cells. This is a positive step forward which means that more children in the ACT will be cared for, rather than pipelined into prison.

“These reforms buck the disturbing trend of governments across the country passing discriminatory and punitive ‘youth justice’ policies that violate the human rights of First Nations children across Australia.

“For decades, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities have implored governments to take real action on reducing the number of our children behind bars.

“We call on every state and territory government to do the right thing for kids and communities, and raise the age of criminal responsibility to at least 14, with no exceptions.”