Policy submissions

Here you’ll find a wide selection of policy papers and submissions we’ve published. Each paper draws on our experience working with disadvantaged youth, families and communities.

Submission to the NSW consultation on minimum energy efficiency rental standards
- 29 May 2026
Jesuit Social Services has made a submission supporting Minimum Energy Efficiency Rental Standards (MEERS) in NSW, highlighting that poor energy efficiency in rentals is a matter of equity, health and climate resilience affecting our most disadvantaged communities. We call for enforceable standards across private and public housing, strong protections against cost pass-throughs to renters, and…
Submission to the federal inquiry into racism, hate and violence directed at Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people
- 1 May 2026
Jesuit Services sees the impacts of systemic racism against First Nations people through the experiences of our participants and practitioners, and in the data we collect. Efforts to eliminate racism, hate and violence directed towards First Nations people must understand and address systemic racism, which creates the architecture around which other forms of racism are…
Submission to Inquiry into Offshore Processing
- 13 February 2026
Jesuit Social Services outlines our grave concerns about Australia’s offshore processing and resettlement arrangements in our submission to a senate inquiry. We call on the Government to use its strength in parliament to initiate a fair, humane and principled reset of Australia’s treatment of refugees and people seeking asylum.
Submission to the Inquiry into the Migration Amendment Bill 2024
- 22 November 2024
Jesuit Social Services welcomes the opportunity to respond to the Inquiry into the Migration Amendment Bill 2024. We are gravely concerned that passing this Bill could have a serious and irreversible impact on the wellbeing and safety of refugees and people seeking asylum. We outline our key concerns in this submission.
Submission to the Inquiry into the Truth and Justice Commission Bill 2024
- 30 September 2024
Jesuit Social Services supports the introduction of the Truth and Justice Commission Bill 2024, and recommends that the Federal Government pass it. We strongly affirm the Government’s commitments to implement the Uluru Statement from the Heart in full and to establish a Makarrata Commission as a priority.
Northern Territory Election Platform
- 19 July 2024
Our vision for the NT - ‘a fairer, more equal and sustainable future for all Territorians’. We believe Government should be partnering with community to achieve these priorities to help ensure a fairer, more equal and sustainable future for all Territorians. For a long time, a range of systems have worked against people facing generational…
Submission to the Multicultural Framework Review
- 24 October 2023
Jesuit Social Services welcomed the opportunity to respond to the Multicultural Framework Review, making recommendations to support a cohesive and multicultural Australia that celebrates the contributions of migrants, refugees and people seeking asylum.
Submission to the Northern Territory's Consultation on Reform to the Minimum Age of Criminal Responsibility
- 26 September 2022
Read our submission to the Northern Territory's consultation to reform the minimum age of criminal responsibility.
Federal Election 2022 platform – A blueprint for a just recovery
- 21 April 2022
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought many pre-existing social and economic issues in Australia to the fore, from housing stress, to poverty, family violence, and insecure employment. As an organisation working with some of the most disadvantaged members of the community, we have witnessed firsthand the disproportionate impact of this crisis on already marginalised people and…
Submission on mandatory sentencing and community-based sentencing options in the Northern Territory
- 8 February 2021
Jesuit Social Services was pleased to contribute to the Northern Territory Law Reform Committee’s consultation on mandatory sentencing and community-based sentencing options. Our submission outlined our opposition to mandatory sentencing and recommended the repeal of all mandatory sentencing provisions in the NT under the Sentencing Act 1995, the Domestic and Family Violence Act 2007 and…