18 August 2025
Northern Territory Attorney-General, the Hon Marie-Clare Boothby MLA, has welcomed progress made at the Standing Council of Attorneys-General (SCAG) meeting in Sydney on Friday 15 August, where Attorneys-General from across Australia met to strengthen justice systems and community safety.
The Council agreed to urgently work towards implementation, by the end of 2025, of mutual recognition of negative Working With Children Check (WWCC) notices.
"This is about keeping children safe, closing loopholes, and strengthening safeguards," said Ms Boothby.
"Territorians expect that when someone is deemed unsafe to work with children in one state, they cannot simply move and try again in another."
Importantly, the Attorney-General noted the NT is the only jurisdiction without current access to the National Reference System and emphasised the vital need of Commonwealth support to ensure interoperability and to close information-sharing gaps.
The meeting also discussed Closing the Gap targets and noted recommendations of the Bail and Remand Reform Working Group, with further discussions to occur at the next SCAG meeting.
"Our Government acknowledges the Closing the Gap targets, but this cannot come at the expense of community safety," said Ms Boothby.
"Our government is delivering both: putting victims first through stronger bail laws, while tackling the root causes of crime by keeping kids in school, holding parents accountable, and creating pathways for young people."
Ms Boothby highlighted the Territory's record of reform since taking office:
Declan's Law has restored the presumption against bail, leading to over 3,300 alleged offenders refused bail since January, a 44% increase compared to Labor's last year in office.Remand is up 40%, keeping more serious alleged offenders off the streets.The system is moving faster, with average time on remand down 7%, and sentenced prisoners now outnumber those on remand.Crime is trending down: house break-ins -31%, robberies -29%, commercial break-ins -16%, non-vehicle theft -15%.
Ms Boothby said the latest crime statistics prove the CLP Government's law and order agenda is delivering real results, with 605 fewer victims of crime in the past six months compared to the same time last year under Labor.
"Let's be clear: nobody wants to see Closing the Gap outcomes worsen, but the last decade shows what was being done simply hasn't worked," Ms Boothby said.
"That's why our government has changed direction, putting victims and community safety first, strengthening our laws, and tackling the root causes Labor ignored.
"Territorians deserve to feel safe in their homes, workplaces and communities.
"We will continue to fight for national reforms that lift safeguards, while delivering stronger bail laws, tougher police powers, and faster justice in the Territory."
View official communique here here and the reducing crime strategy here here.
