Everyone in Western Australia deserves to feel safe and have equal opportunities in life, no matter our background, ability, gender, sexuality, income or postcode.

But successive governments have introduced and aggressively championed policies that exclude, disadvantage or vilify people just because of who they are. 

There is no place in WA for racism, sexism, ableism or homophobia. We must do better to address the discrimination and inequality that prevent so many in our community from living a good life, because none of us are equal until we are all equal. 

The Greens are committed to addressing social injustices across all areas of life in WA, ensuring that people of all backgrounds and identities can safely assert the rights and dignities we all deserve. 

The Greens will:

Increase funding for critical domestic violence services

WA is in the grips of a domestic violence crisis. Every nine minutes, police are called to a family and domestic violence incident in WA, with an estimated 30 percent of WA women having experienced physical, emotional or economic abuse at the hands of a live-in partner.

But successive governments have left the critical services that support women escaping domestic and family violence woefully underfunded. As a result, WA’s frontline services report having to regularly turn away vulnerable people seeking support, placing them at risk of further violence, homelessness and substance use.

The Greens will take action towards the elimination of all gendered violence in WA. We will:

• Increase funding and resourcing for family and domestic violence crisis services and prevention programs
• Increase funding for stable and long-term safe accommodation for women and children experiencing family and domestic violence

Enshrine a human rights act for WA 

Our human rights are central to our ability to live a good life free of fear, discrimination and harassment. But right now, there is no comprehensive set of laws in WA that compel the government, police and other authorities to act in a way that upholds our personal, civil, economic and digital rights and freedoms. 

A charter or bill of rights would address this gap by enshrining in law the right of all Western Australians to live with dignity and respect. Queensland, the ACT and Victoria have all recently updated their respective legislation to protect the rights of their citizens. It’s time for Western Australia to follow suit. 

The Greens will protect the rights of all Western Australians by introducing a human rights act in the WA Parliament.

Kids need help not harm

Western Australia’s youth justice system needs urgent reform. Right now, kids as young as 10 are being sent to prison – some to a dangerous maximum security adult facility – and our rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youth in detention is the highest in the country.

Not only is the WA Labor government’s punitive approach to youth justice actively harming some of our community’s most vulnerable kids, it’s blaming them for falling through the cracks created by their policies.

Kids need help, not harm. We need urgent whole-of-system reform to youth justice in WA that prioritises the wellbeing of young people and addresses the root cause of offending.

The Greens will:

• Raise the minimum age of incarceration from 10 to 14
• Close Unit 18
• Reduce the rate of child removals
• Increase resourcing for First Nations led support services

Build better justice

Western Australia’s hardline approach to crime is not working. After decades of reactive justice policies centred on policing, prosecution and incarceration, WA now has the second-highest rate of imprisonment and the fastest-growing prison population in the country. 

Research shows imprisoning people does not effectively reduce crime, rehabilitate offenders or improve community safety. But the WA Labor government continues to pour millions of dollars into punishing offenders without addressing the underlying causes and social determinants of criminal behaviour.

The Greens have a plan to break the cycle by investing in cost-effective, evidence-based solutions, including:

• Early intervention and prevention programs for at-risk populations
• Alternative first responder models proven to minimise justice system involvement
• Bail support and post-release programs to reduce reoffending
• Self-determining justice models by and for First Nations communities
• On-country cultural programs for at-risk First Nations youth, such as the Kimberley’s Yiriman Project 
• Other evidence-backed initiatives including restorative justice conferencing

Sexual orientation, gender identity, and intersex rights

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, queer and asexual (LGBTIQA+) people continue to face inequality and discrimination in Western Australia, where gaps in our laws allow hate speech, harmful conversion practices, and employment termination based purely on sexual orientation and identity.

The WA Labor government made promises to strengthen critical legal protections for LGBTIQA+ people, but its failure to deliver these reforms is keeping the community trapped in a painful public debate over the right to simply be themselves.

WA must catch up with the rest of the country and ensure our laws protect everyone equally, no matter who we are.

The Greens are committed to protecting the rights, dignity and equality of all LGBTQIA+ people in Western Australia. We will:

• Reinstate inclusive education funding (formerly Safe Schools)
• Implement full self-ID and demedicalise gender identity
• Ban deferrable medical interventions on intersex people, including infants
• Ban conversion practices
• Update the Equal Opportunity Act

Legalise cannabis

The war on drugs is an expensive failure. Between 2017 and 2021, almost 90 percent of arrests for illicit drug offences in WA were for personal cannabis use, placing a disproportionate financial and social burden on our communities.

Evidence shows that legalising cannabis would have significant benefits for WA, from reducing harm and raising tax revenue to creating thousands of new jobs and relieving pressure on our courts and prisons. 

Like other drugs such as alcohol, cannabis should be licenced and regulated – not dealt with in the criminal justice system. WA needs a new, realistic and evidence-based approach to drug policy that reflects the reality of Western Australians’ lives.

The Greens will push to reform our approach to drugs in WA. We will:

• Legalise of the use and supply of cannabis in WA
• Allow the growing of cannabis plants for personal use, trading and gifting 
• Enforce appropriate regulations and taxation