The New South Wales government privately suggested children as young as 10 could be placed in an unpaid work program or on “extended payment plans” to help them pay off hefty fines for breaching Covid rules, prompting outrage from the state’s community legal centres.
Roughly 3,000 Covid fines have been issued to children aged 10-17 in NSW, most commonly for failing to comply with a direction under the public health act, and usually for amounts of $1,000.
