VICTORIAN Premier Jacinta Allan has vowed to get tough on crime, pledging a legal shake-up around bail laws to address rising crime across the state, but is it too little, too late?
Whistleblowers have revealed that the Allan Labor Government rejected proposals to tighten bail laws because they claimed they did not have enough prison beds. Member for Northern Victoria Wendy Lovell said this confirms that the closure of Dhruringile Prison in August 2024 was an extremely short-sighted mistake.
Victoria has been experiencing a crime crisis since the State Government weakened bail laws in 2023. Repeat offenders are regularly released back into the community on bail, some up to 54 times.
Since 2022, the number of recorded offences in Victoria has continued to rise from 474,073 offences in 2023 to 578,762 reported in September 2024 (Crime Statistics Agency).
Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that in 2024, Victoria overtook the ACT as the jurisdiction with the lowest incarceration rate in the country.
Recent reporting has revealed that in the weeks before being fired, former Victoria Police Commissioner Shane Patton submitted a proposal to strengthen bail laws.
However, inside sources said the Allan Labor Government rejected the proposal because of the cost and the lack of prison beds to keep more people in custody. Sources have also said that Shane Patton warned both Jacinta Allan and former premier Daniel Andrews that crime rates would skyrocket if bail laws were watered down, but these warnings were ignored.
“Labor’s shock closure of Dhurringile prison was a blow to the local community and the economy, ending 160 well-paid jobs and impacting other local businesses who supplied food and services to the prison,” said Ms Lovell.
“Labor’s bail laws are making our streets unsafe. Shane Patton sounded the alarm, but instead of listening to his warnings, Premier Allan showed him the door.”
“It’s clear the prison closure was extremely short-sighted. Victoria now has fewer prison beds and has to let repeat offenders out on bail because it has run out of space to keep them on remand.”
The Tough Bail Bill will be introduced to parliament Tuesday, March 19 – promising to create the “toughest bail laws ever”, including a new bail test that is “extremely hard to pass” targeting repeat offenders of the worst crimes, among other reforms.
Premier Allan said, “I have listened, and I have acted. The tough bail laws will jolt the system: community safety above all, toughest bail laws ever, and consequences for breaking the rules.”
