New legislation to crackdown on youth crime has passed Parliament.

The Children and Justice Legislation Amendment (Youth Justice Reform) Bill  2017 means that young people have the very real risk of having their matters heard in higher courts.

The legislation means that there will be much tougher consequences for young people who assault youth justice officers while in detention.

The legislation means that there will be a presumption in favour of uplifting serious youth offences, such as aggravated home invasion and aggravated carjacking, from the Children’s Court to the higher courts for those aged 16 years and older.

There will also be a presumption that young offenders who damage property, escape or attempt to escape from a youth justice facility will serve their sentences on top of an existing period of detention regardless of age.

The legislation is a result of representations made by the union to Government about improving safety and security inside our Youth Justice Centres.

"I want to take this opportunity to express the government’s gratitude to all of the staff who work in our youth justice facilities.  Their welfare and their safety is very important to me and the government I lead, and we will do whatever we can to ensure their safety."

Daniel Andrews, Premier of Vicotoria