Spike in redress claims after sexual abuse inquiry

Tasmania is implementing 191 recommendations from the September report, including closing the Ashley Youth Detention Centre.

The government in June agreed to pay $75 million to 129 former detainees who launched legal action over alleged abuse dating back to the 1960s. 

A national redress scheme for survivors of abuse in government institutions was set up in 2018 after a royal commission. 

As of mid-July, the scheme had paid more than $1.4 billion to 15,816 survivors. 

Acting secretary of Tasmania's justice department Kristy Bourne said the state's redress team had seen an increase in the number of people coming forward. 

"I don't have a breakdown but it is true to say that was not expected given the time in the scheme's history … and the expectation it will cease," she told a parliamentary committee on Monday. 

More than $63 million had been paid to Tasmanians, Attorney-General Guy Barnett said. 

Mr Barnett said the state was exploring options for setting up a state-based redress program, if the national scheme, due to end in 2028, doesn't continue. 

A state-based scheme was one of the recommendations of the inquiry's final report. 

The national scheme continued to "receive an increasing number of applications", its website noted in a mid-July update.

Tasmanian 2023/24 budget updates released on Thursday revealed the state's liability for abuse claims was $647 million, $571 million more than forecast one year earlier. 

The government in 2021 pledged to close the detention centre by the end of 2024 but has pushed back the date as part of broader therapeutic justice reforms. 

The centre was described as a "monster" during the inquiry, which said it should be closed urgently - a call echoed by human rights and social and justice groups. 

1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732)

National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028

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