The Hon. Natasha Fyles, Chief Minister of the Northern Territory, The Hon. Chansey Paech, Attorney General and Minister for Justice (NT), Joint Media Release, 28 March 2023

The Territory Labor Government is stamping out knife crime in the Territory.

Chief Minister Natasha Fyles announced urgent bail legislation will be introduced to parliament which will see a new presumption against bail for violent offences involving a weapon.

There will also be a presumption against bail for co-offenders who participate in violent offences involving a weapon, even if they do not possess the weapon themselves.

These latest changes will apply to youth and adults.

A review into bail for weapon offences remains ongoing, but these are early changes that have already been identified for strengthening – with the Chief Minister instructing they were to be introduced as a matter of urgency.

These are much-needed amendments and are in line with community expectations.

The changes are expected to be debated in parliament.

Quotes from Chief Minister Natasha Fyles:

“Enough is enough – if you are charged with a violent offence involving a weapon – it is expected that you will sit on remand and out of the community until your case is heard.

“We refuse to let knife crime become the norm here in the Territory and these changes send a strong message to the community.

“This is just one of many initiatives announced by the Territory Labor Government to tackle and deter violent offending – with more announcements imminent.

“We are a government that acts. We will leave no stone unturned and we will never stop looking at ways to improve community safety.”

Quotes from Attorney General and Minister for Justice Chansey Paech:

“Over the last week we have been meeting with relevant agencies to ensure these changes wouldn’t have unintended consequences.

“The safety of our community is paramount and these changes are in line with community expectations.”