First Report on Rural Crime Critical to Addressing Problems
Published on 10 June 2025
Mayor Rick Firman OAM, Chairman of the NSW Country Mayors Association (CMA) has welcomed the release of the Legislative Assembly Committee on law and Safety’s Interim Report on Community Safety in Regional and Rural Communities addressing the drivers of youth crime though early intervention.
The Report is the first of two reports the Committee intends to publish with the second focussing on policing and legislative reform.
“The CMA Board and Members are very concerned about the rising level of youth crime in remote, rural and regional areas. The Committee’s report makes 11 Findings most of which echo the concerns that our Members have about the underlying issues that must be addressed if the problems are to be resolved. The Committee has made 19 Recommendations to address those Findings, many of which require better and more co-ordinated, long-term investment in services and infrastructure that better support young people who live in country NSW” Mayor Firman said.
“Our Board and Members welcome the Committee’s recognition of the need for better place-based, community-led solutions that reflect local conditions. We believe that Local Government is central to identifying those solutions because we are place-based government. The Mayors, councillors and staff of the councils we represent are dealing, sometimes daily, with repercussions of the rise in violent crime and property theft. We must remember that every crime has a victim and every resident has the right to feel safe and secure not just in their own home but in the community they choose to live in.”
“We note that Committee’s recommendations for targeted mental health support for victims of crime as well as for young people suffering from mental illness. The Report notes a 2015 survey conducted by Youth Justice which found that 83% of young people in custody had at least one psychological disorder. The lack of mental health services across the board in remote, rural and regional NSW is of significant concern to the CMA. It is concerning to think a lack of investment in mental health professionals and support services could be one of the drivers of youth crime. This is an issue which can only be addressed by targeted, long-term investment by the State” Mayor Firman said.
“We strongly support the need for better co-ordinated programming and more collaborative approaches to the delivery of services and programs, where agencies do not compete against each other for funding but work collaboratively for the best outcomes. Too often we hear stories about multiple agencies delivering programs for the same cohort of residents in a single LGA, this is neither efficient or effective. We support the Report’s recommendation for co-designed and community-led programs and believe that Local Government is integral in the delivery of this approach” Mayor Firman said.
“This Interim Report provides a balanced assessment of the challenges that communities are facing with the rise in youth offending and the solutions that should be considered to address the problem. The CMA looks forward to the release of the next report from the Committee on policing and legislation. The two reports will provide us with a holistic view of the issues that we are confronting in country NSW. Our Board and Members look forward to working collaboratively with the State to implement the recommendations that the Committee has made” Mayor Firman said.
Mayor Firman said “the CMA is proud to have contributed to the Committee’s work. We congratulate the Committee on its work, its commitment to consulting with affected communities and stakeholders and its willingness to highlight the problems that country NSW is facing with rising youth offending.”
For further information, contact: CMA Chairman - Mayor Rick Firman OAM: 0429 204 060