Rachel Riga

It was an extraordinary move from the Queensland government this week to propose rewriting one of the central planks of its youth justice laws. The progressive Labor government has long argued removing "detention as a last resort" would be reckless and make the youth crime issue worse. So why then, did Premier Steven Miles — who was previously the head of Queensland Labor's left faction — oversee such a significant policy shift?

In short: The state government will introduce legislation today that will allow police to stop and search someone for knives using metal-detecting wands at shopping centres, licensed premises, sporting and entertainment venues, and high-risk retail outlets. Queensland Council of Civil Liberties president Michael Cope says the laws represent a "violation of fundamental civil liberties". What's next?

Queensland's premier has unveiled a raft of law changes to further crack down on crime ahead of the state election this year. Steven Miles revealed the new laws include expanding a trial of police stop-and-search powers to shopping centres, licensed premises, sporting and entertainment venues and high-risk retail outlets. The trial – which will now be extended until 2026 — gives police powers to randomly search for knives using metal detecting wands.