Welcome U-Turn on funding

THE State Government has done a U-turn on its decision to scrap a highly successful youth justice program.

Designed to divert at-risk young people from crime, Mission Australia's U-Turn program is today back on track after receiving a $600,000 funding injection from the State Government.

Tasmania Police announced earlier this year it could no longer afford to fund the U-Turn program because of savage cuts to the police budget.

But Mission Australia state director Noel Mundy says the $600,000 funding will save the program, which has involved about 450 young people restoring and giving away 49 cars in the past decade.

"First and foremost we are celebrating about Mission Australia being able to help 40 young people every year into the future, keeping them out of the youth justice system," Mr Mundy said in a statement.

"We are celebrating being able to give these young people life skills, being able to make them job-ready in the car and other mechanical industries.

"It's not the $860,000 that was first cut from the Tasmania Police budget, but we are confident that continued corporate support from around Tasmania will assist us.

"We may have to cut our cloth a bit but we aim to provide the best program we can."

Mr Mundy said the next full U-Turn program would start in September.

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