Victoria’s bail reforms in need of ‘urgent reform’
A Victorian Social Services group has issued a public warning that recent bail reforms in the State are driving severe and unsafe overcrowding in police cells, elevating risks to health, safety, and human rights.
The Jesuit Social Services is calling on the Victorian Government to change course urgently, citing growing strain across the justice system and escalating costs tied to detention, particularly for young people.
The organisation said that the “severe and dangerous overcrowding” stems from bail reforms introduced last year.
They attributed the conditions directly to the recent changes, arguing that they have increased the number of people—“including children”—held on remand. The organisation framed the issue as both a human rights concern and a matter of public safety, contending that the current approach is setting the conditions under which deaths in custody become a real risk.
Key Points
- Jesuit Social Services links bail reforms to severe police-cell overcrowding
- Hundreds allegedly transferred between cells, breaching human rights obligations
- Remand numbers reportedly rising, including for children in custody
- Advocates warn of people taken far from families and communities
- Overcrowding said to increase conditions for deaths in custody risk
- Youth detention spending rose from $115m to $323m since 2015–16
Jesuit Social Services referenced reporting, released today, that, in its view, demonstrated the immediate operational impacts of the reforms.
The report was cited as evidence that large numbers of people are being relocated across multiple facilities, a process the organisation says “breaches their human rights and puts people’s safety at real risk.”
The statement emphasised that these transfers are not isolated incidents, but part of a broader pattern connected to policy changes introduced in the previous year. The organisation’s concerns include the cumulative effect of repeated transfers on detainees and on the stability of custodial operations.
“Hundreds of Victorians are being moved between police cells”
— Julie Edwards, Jesuit Social Services
Escalating custody numbers
A core argument advanced by the organisation is that the bail reforms have intensified remand rates. And these impacts extend to children, with more young people held in custody while awaiting outcomes in their cases.
The organisation has suggested that remand-heavy settings are ill-suited to meeting safety and wellbeing needs and instead may entrench harms associated with detention.
First Nations safety risks
Jesuit Social Services has pointed to recent advocacy from the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service (VALS) to underscore the human impact of the current policy settings.
They highlighted accounts of people being taken far from their families and communities, with the organisation warning that these conditions make deaths in custody a “real and serious risk.”
The organisation described a justice system “under enormous strain,” citing multiple reports across the sector as evidence of mounting pressure. It argued that rapid expansion and overcrowding in prisons are linked with diminished safety and do not support community safety in practice.
Jesuit Social Services has urged the Victorian Government to change direction, contending that evidence-based alternatives exist and are more effective in enhancing community safety. The release locates the present challenges within a broader pattern of over-reliance on custodial responses.
“The Victorian Government must change course”
— Julie Edwards, Jesuit Social Services
Youth detention: expenditure and daily costs
Financial data has highlighted a significant rise in youth detention spending in Victoria over the past decade.
According to Jesuit Social Services, expenditure grew from $115 million in 2015-16 to $323 million in 2024-25.
The organisation also quantified the operational burden at an individual level: it cited a daily cost of $7,304 per young person incarcerated in Victoria, equivalent to $2.6 million per year.
Timeline
- Last year: Bail reforms introduced in Victoria, according to Jesuit Social Services
- 24 February 2026: Media release cites reporting “released today” on cell transfers
- 2015–16 to 2024–25: Youth detention expenditure reportedly grows from $115m to $323m
- Current costing: $7,304 per day to incarcerate a young person, or $2.6m per year
Government and custodial agencies
Jesuit Social Services has placed primary responsibility for system settings with the Victorian Government, asserting that policy choices have driven overcrowding and escalated remand. The organisation links current conditions to Government-led reform and urges immediate action to ensure “the safety and wellbeing of all Victorians in custody.”
