December 11, 2025
A Bill was introduced into State Parliament on Wednesday which will mean children as young as 10 – anywhere in Queensland – could be ordered by courts to wear electronic ankle monitors while on bail.
The Bill will make permanent a trial which has been running, with some amendments and extensions, since 2021.
The trial, which had aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of electronic monitoring, had set a minimum age at 15 but that has now been scrapped.
The trial was also only allowed to run in defined areas, ie. Cairns, Fraser Coast, Gold Coast, Ipswich, Logan, Mackay , Moreton, Mt Isa, North Brisbane, Rockhampton, South Brisbane, Toowoomba and Townsville.
The amended legislation removes these restrictions.
A review of the initial trial in 2022 failed to confirm the effectiveness of electronic monitoring in deterring offending, but this was blamed on low numbers as it is believed just four children were involved.
At the time, critics also pointed to the lack of availability of the devices.
Under the new legislation, a monitoring device can be ordered – even for first offenders – if in the area in which the child lives there are services to support the effective operation of a monitoring device; services suitable to support the child’s compliance with the condition; and services suitable to support the monitoring of the child.
When passed, the new legislation will come into effect on April 30.
