About us

The Queensland Sentencing Advisory Council provides independent research and advice, seeks public views and promotes community understanding of sentencing matters.

Our role

The Council:

  • informs the community about sentencing in Queensland through research and publications
  • engages with Queenslanders to gather their views on sentencing
  • if asked by the Attorney-General, advises the Attorney-General on matters relating to sentencing.

We operate in accordance with part 12 of the Penalties and Sentences Act 1992. We were re-established in 2016 after an amendment to this Act. The previous Sentencing Advisory Council operated from 2010 to 2012.

What the Council can’t do

If you are a member of the public, please note that the Council cannot:

For media outlets and other professionals, the Council cannot:

  • review sentencing outcomes in individual cases
  • provide opinion on how an individual case has been sentenced (although we can comment on the wider sentencing context).

Meet the Council

The Council consists of up to 14 independent members, appointed by the Governor in Council on recommendation by the Attorney-General.

Meet the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Advisory Panel

The Advisory Panel comprises up to 8 independent members who provide expert advice to the Council as it works to understand and address the over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Queensland’s criminal justice system.

Our vision is just sentencing, that is understood by the community.

Our purpose is to inform, engage and advise the community and government about sentencing in Queensland.

Read our Strategic plan.

Our Annual Report provides information about our key achievements, financial and non-financial performance in 2022-23.

Find previous annual reports on our publications page.

Disclaimer

The materials presented on this site are provided by the Queensland Government for information purposes only. Users should note that the electronic versions of the annual report on this site are not recognised as the official or authorised version. The official copy of the annual report—as tabled in the Legislative Assembly of Queensland—can be accessed from the Queensland Parliament’s tabled papers website database.

To maintain our independence, we develop our own work plan and report to the Attorney-General every year on the work we have done to perform our statutory functions.

We have a number of rules, policies and guidelines that govern the way we work. You can view these in our publication scheme.

Contact us