EARLY YEARS 'KEY TO CRIME PREVENTION'

The report by the Upper House Committee on Law and Justice found that
law and order campaigns and an emphasis onmore police and prisons had
dominated the crime debate, but called for longer-term solutions such
as preventing crime through social support.

"The committee understands the electoral pressures under which
governments operate and the importance of achieving outcomes within
short-term cycles. However ... many of the most effective solutions
are long-term," the report said.

"Provision of effective social support will not only reduce crime but
lead to many other positive social outcomes,"

The committee found that media reports about crime and election
debates on law and order often led to calls for more police and
harsher punishments, and people who focused on crime prevention were
mistakenly labelled "bleeding hearts" who were going "soft on crime".

Children who were neglected or subject to abuse at an early age were
more likely to grow into juvenile or adult offenders, the committee
heard. Other risk factors included marital conflict, poverty, poor
education,location, drug abuse, gambling, disability, health factors,
and life traumas.

A stable family environment, problem-solving skills, self-esteem and
identity, and a strong moral value system were protective factors for
children.

"The earlier that protective factors are instilled in an individual,
the greater the chances of preventing later offending behaviour," the
report found.

Early childhood intervention, including through community and private
child-care centres, was the key to crime prevention, according to the
report.

The committee's chairman, Labor MP Mr Ron Dyer, said probably not
enough emphasis was placed on early intervention, although the
Government had already started to shift its focus.

Mr Dyer said crime prevention was "not simply a matter of the hard
hand of law enforcement acting virtually after the damage has occurred".

Crime prevention needed to go beyond the criminal justice agencies and
involve government departments such as Community Services (DOCS),
Health and Education.