Victoria has followed Queensland in legislating tough new "adult crime, adult time" laws. In Victoria the new laws mean that a fourteen year old can be given a life sentence for crimes such as home invasion. And in Queensland 113,000 people have signed a petition to give people greater powers to defend themselves from home invasion. But is home invasion on the rise in Australia and will these new laws work to reduce the incidence of these crimes?

Guest : Alex Simpson, Associate Professor of Criminology, Macquarie University