Queensland sees surge in blue card refusals, but does it mean safer kids?

Thousands more people are being barred from working with children in Queensland, according to the state's Department of Justice. In the last financial year, 6,403 people were denied working with children checks under Queensland's blue card system.

This number is nearly double the amount previously refused, with 3,712 people prevented from holding the passes in the 2024-2025 financial year. A spokesperson for the Department of Justice said it was a sign of a strong system.

"Queensland has one of Australia's strongest working with children screening systems, with robust safeguards in place to protect children and young people," they said.

More than 1.4 million people are currently monitored through the blue card system, a figure up by about 100,000 people more than last year. The government expanded the scope of roles requiring blue cards in December, following a landmark report into failings in the child safety sector.

However, academics warn that increased refusals don't necessarily mean safer kids. University of Queensland law professor Tamara Walsh said a higher number of blue card refusals did not mean a more protective system.

"A lot of discretion is given to decision makers when they're deciding whether to give someone a blue card or not," she said.

"We're actually preventing people from getting blue cards who we would want to have blue cards, so the system is not being strengthened in the ways in which we'd all hope. What we're doing is capturing a whole lot of people who don't pose a protective risk to children and we're missing people who do."

The department had a 98 per cent clearance rate at the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal last year, despite a 25 per cent increase in lodgements. Queensland's Attorney-General and Minister for Justice and Integrity Deb Frecklington said a rigorous and fair framework was in place.

"The safety of children remains the paramount consideration in Queensland's Blue Card system," she said.

"The Crisafulli Government will continue to support a framework that is both rigorous and fair."

Further changes are on the way, with the introduction of legislation for a new Child Protection Commission in August. The centralised commission would coordinate agencies and departments — including blue card services — to share intelligence and investigate concerning behaviour that may not meet the threshold for police investigation.