The Bail Bench Book is the official guidance provided to judges and magistrates on how to apply Victoria's bail laws in practice.
The updated edition makes clear that bail decision-making remains largely unchanged - despite Premier Jacinta Allan promoting two changes as major reforms:
1. Remand for youth offenders
The Premier claimed in a press release released in March, that removing the provision that remand is a last resort for minors would lead to greater community safety:
"Right now, under section 3B of the Bail Act, an accused youth offender is remanded (detained in custody) only as a 'last resort'. The Tough Bail Laws will remove the principle of remand as last resort."
However, the Bail Bench Book update states that courts must still apply the "minimum intervention required" when dealing with a child, and that Labor's legislation "does not alter how bail decision makers are to approach the necessary intervention required to be imposed."
The Bench Book also makes clear:
- "...a child, especially an Aboriginal child, should be released on bail, with conditions, wherever possible."
- "Both before and after the amendment a decision maker was required to impose the minimum intervention required in the circumstances."
- "(Labor's amendment) does not change the fact that decision makers must consider what constitutes the minimum intervention necessary."
2. Community safety as an overarching principle
In the same release, the Premier claimed her government's changes mean community safety now comes first in all bail decisions:
"Under the laws, community safety will become the overarching principle for bail decision-making for offenders of all ages. It will be a clear and unambiguous signal: community safety comes first in all considerations."
But the Bail Bench Book directly contradicts this, advising:
- "...while community safety must be maximised 'to the greatest extent possible', this is not an absolute maximum. It must necessarily allow room for consideration of the other fundamental principles."
- "This means that in many bail applications there will be significant competing and conflicting factors a decision maker must take into account and balance."
- "The 2025 amendments... do not affect the operation of the exceptional circumstances test. While amendments to section 1B mean more attention must now be placed squarely on the overarching importance of community safety, this does not change the exercise of determining if exceptional circumstances exist."
Leader of the Opposition Brad Battin said Labor had once again shown it does not put the safety of Victorians first.
"Victorians have had enough. We need laws to protect the community, not loopholes that keep violent offenders on the street."
"Labor weakened Victoria's bail laws, and their so-called reforms are a joke. Only the Liberals and Nationals' 'Break Bail, Face Jail' plan will deliver real consequences for offenders and restore community safety."
Shadow Attorney-General Michael O'Brien said that the Bail Bench Book proved that Labor's bail laws are still weak and fail to protect the community.
"The judges' manual blows the whistle on the Premier's spin. The truth is that Labor's bail laws are as weak as ever, putting Victorians at risk.
"The Premier's spin does not match up with reality. Her changes do not deliver what she claims.
"Victorian judges are still being instructed that youth offenders should get bail wherever possible. Judges are still being told that community safety is just one of a number of 'competing and conflicting factors' when deciding bail.
"Now that judges are telling the Premier her bail laws will change nothing, it is time to adopt the Liberals and Nationals' 'Break Bail, Face Jail' policies.
"'Break Bail, Face Jail' will ensure real consequences for offenders who commit crimes while on bail.
"Labor deliberately weakened Victoria's bail laws then failed to fix them. Only the Liberals and Nationals have a plan to keep Victorians safe."
