Tasmanian governments were aware for decades of systemic problems at the state's youth detention centre, including potentially unlawful isolation, but didn't implement meaningful change.An inquiry which examined state responses to child sexual abuse allegations said it held "grave" concerns for the welfare of young people at Ashley Youth Detention Centre.It said there was a "live and current" risk of child sexual abuse at the facility and illegal isolation practices were likely still being used.The inquiry's final report, made public on Tuesday, said there had been 17 briefings, reports and reviews to government since 2003 all highlighting safety issues.The inquiry has called for the centre to be shut as soon as possible.The state government, which in 2021 pledged to shut the centre by the end of 2024, is still working towards a concrete closure plan but has indicated it will take years.In 2018, the Liberal government ignored the preferred option of a 2016 report into youth justice reform for Ashley to be replaced by two new facilities.The report found therapeutic or trauma-informed care was not being practised at the centre.The government instead committed $7.3 million to upgrade Ashley, one of the report's other options.Then-human services minister Jacquie Petrusma said the government had "sought to balance the needs of youth offenders with the importance of the facility and its 60 jobs to the ... community".In late 2019, a state ombudsman report to government said staff training as part of a shift to a therapeutic program adopted about three years earlier was "not working".He said some staff continued to operate from a corrections philosophy.The inquiry said the reviews and reports were "repetitive"."Successive Tasmanian governments have repeatedly and consistently been made aware of persistent systemic issues in the treatment ... young people detained at Ashley," their report said."(Governments have) failed to achieve sufficient meaningful change to address those issues."The inquiry said reports described "inappropriate strip searching" or "punitive" approaches, which amounted to human rights violations.It said the relevant government department has been "on notice" about potentially unlawful isolation practices since at least 2013 and had not taken sufficient action. In 2020, a report from a childhood expert said awareness and understanding of a trauma-informed model of care designed in 2019 for the centre was "very low".In November, a United Nations report said it was seriously concerned about the practice of keeping children in solitary confinement at Ashley which contravened prisoner treatment rules.Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff on Tuesday said if he could shut Ashley now he would, but there were no immediate alternatives.He pledged an extra $5 million in 2023/24 to ensure the safety and wellbeing of detainees at the centre and said work was underway to install additional CCTV cameras to cover black spots.
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