Shocking funding shortfall exposed in Child Safety budget
- $461 million funding blackhole exposed in Child Safety after former Labor Government cut funds in 2024/2025 Budget.
- Crisafulli Government confirms plans to ensure children in care of Child Safety aren't impacted by former government's failures.
- Government confirms commitment to fixing broken Residential Care system with dual carer model and better support for children in care.
It can be revealed the former Labor government left a $461 million funding blackhole in the budget for Queensland's most vulnerable young people.
The Department of Families, Seniors, Disability Services and Child Safety faced a funding cliff in the 2024-25 Budget, following a drop in budgeted funding of about 30 per cent compared to the previous year.
The former government's funding cuts in Child Safety was down from 2023-24 of almost $1 billion and $800 million in 2022-23.
It follows the Crisafulli Government's rescue of 91 frontline workers' jobs before Christmas – including case support workers, paralegals and the Finding Kin team - which were also subject to underfunding by Labor.
Treasurer David Janetzki said Labor crafted their budget for political purposes.
"They left unfunded bombs, knowing the money for these essential services would run out before the end of the year," Treasurer Janetzki said.
"Under Labor's funding arrangements our most vulnerable young people were left out in the cold.
"Children who are living in residential care would have been stranded without carers to help them and without a roof over their head.
"This situation is an indictment on Labor's hypocritical financial management that put CFMEU backroom deals ahead of the delivery of essential services for Queenslanders."
Minister for Child Safety Amanda Camm said Queensland Labor's disregard for the state's most vulnerable children was shameful.
"The budget blackhole the former government left in the residential care and out of home care system shows a clear lack of care and attention for at risk Queensland children," Ms Camm said.
"The Crisafulli Government has done what Labor would not.
"We are committed to funding the system they failed to budget for this financial year, which saw residential providers flee.
"We are committed to repairing the system and working in partnership with the sector.
"We have guaranteed the jobs of 91 frontline child safety workers that Labor did not fund past Christmas, which would have put vulnerable children at even greater risk.
"We have started the process to repair Queensland's broken child safety system as part of our $383 million Safer Children, Safer Communities policy.
"We want to see meaningful change for the more than 2000 young people living in residential care across Queensland and that means providing proper funding."
