The decision by the Victorian government to abandon plans to raise the age of criminal responsibility has been slammed by independent Senator Lidia Thorpe, who called it a "weak backdown".

The Victorian government under former leader Daniel Andrews had planned to raise the age to 12 this year, and then to 14 in 2027, subject to an alternative service model.

However this was abandoned on Tuesday, with Premier Jacinta Allan stating this was a different government and citing community safety and concern around youth crime.

The decision, announced amongst a raft of alterations to the Youth Justice Bill - including more stringent bail conditions - has been attacked by Indigenous organisations, human rights groups and criminologists, who all said the government's proposal will protect the community is a misnomer not based on evidence.

Some, like the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service (VALS), argued the decision was a cave in by the government to conservative media and the Victorian police.

This was reiterated by Djirra, whose chief executive Antoinette Braybrook said: "The Allan Government is confusing information from a biased, politically motivated scare campaign clearly run by Victoria Police as a substitute for evidence and FACT. ABS data shows that Victoria's youth crime incidents remain at historic lows".

"Now is the time for the Allan Government to show REAL leadership and follow through on its commitments to Aboriginal people and our self-determination. We no longer accept a betrayal of our trust. Our kids deserve better," Ms Braybrook said via X, formerly Twitter.

We are SHOCKED and dismayed at the Allan Government's decision to break its PROMISE to #RaiseTheAge of criminal responsibility to 14 years old by 2027. The youth crime wave narrative we are all reading about and seeing in the media is NOT reality @DjirraVIC @Change_Record 1/4 pic.twitter.com/wsoyNbo02D

— Antoinette Braybrook AM. YES (@BraybrookA) August 13, 2024

Senator Thorpe said the decision was evidence Labor was continuing to back down against conservative attacks on supposed crime waves nationwide.

"Across the country we're seeing Labor governments cave to media and Coalition fear-mongering and go against what the evidence says will make communities safer and help disadvantaged kids," the Gunnai, Gunditjmara and Djab Wurrung senator said.

"Prison simply doesn't work to rehabilitate, deter, or protect communities in the long run. Jailing children increases the risk they'll reoffend in future, often in more serious ways. It entrenches disadvantage and exacerbates underlying issues. There's clear evidence for this."

National Director of Change the Record, Blake Cansdale, reiterated what many had said, calling it a "broken promise, plain and simple".

"At numerous points, the government had opportunities to support and protect our children, but instead, they chose a punitive approach," the Anaiwan man said.

"Children end up behind bars because our governments have let them down — failing to provide safe and stable homes, neglecting early health checks that could identify impairments or disabilities, and ignoring their cries for help."

ACU criminologist Dr Matthew Morgan told National Indigenous Times children who were incarcerated early - even on remand - only became more criminalised when surrounded by older offenders, which in turn failed to make the community safer.

"If you look at the broad spectrum of criminal behaviour throughout the life course, we call the age crime curve: it peaks at 16 to 18 and then drops off a face of a cliff," Dr Morgan said.

"People just grow out of crime. They get opportunities, they get jobs, get married, get kids. So people naturally will grow out of crime —unless you institutionalise them".

Senator Thorpe said many of the children needed care, "not more abuse and neglect".

"We need to remember that most of these children have disabilities or cognitive impairments, are severely disadvantaged and have histories of trauma," she said.

Victoria's Director of 54 reasons, Gai Campbell, which delivers Save the Children's services in Australia, said the Allan government couldn't abandon children in the justice system, who are "often are themselves victims of crime and survivors of maltreatment including domestic and family violence".

"By raising the age of criminal responsibility to 14, which is in line with legal, medical and human rights best practice, it allows rehabilitation to be prioritised over punitive punishment and gives young people the chance to break the cycle of re-offending," Ms Campbell said.

In a strongly worded statement, Amnesty International said they were "shocked and completely horrified by this act of betrayal by the Victorian Labor government".

Amnesty International Indigenous Rights Campaigner, Kacey Teerman, said the premier was "actively ignoring" the evidence that incarcerating children only compounded abuse and trauma.

"[It] denies them the opportunity to turn their lives around through rehabilitative diversionary programs," the Gomeroi woman said.

Reiterating her calls from last week for a national approach, Senator Thorpe said the federal government needed to start "leading positive change," arguing "evidence-based solutions that have been proven to break the cycle of incarceration remain desperately under-resourced".

"Advocates have been calling for the federal government to lead a national approach to justice reform, like they do in other issues like environment and disability, but the government has failed to act. I am now strongly focused on that," she said.

"They need to work with First Peoples, and the health and community sectors, to create strong federal frameworks that hold the states and territories accountable and stop the abuse. They need to prioritise care, wellbeing, and rehabilitation for children."