A crime-troubled territory is making it legal for children as young as 16 to carry and use pepper spray for self defence following a year-long trial.
The Northern Territory is set to legalise the use of OC Spray, citing a 99 per cent success rate for its trial.
Availability will also be expanded, with 16 and 17-year-olds allowed to carry the spray with parental permission, the NT government said.
“Territorians have embraced OC Spray for self-defence and made it clear they want to continue to have access and they want to see that access expanded to younger people,” Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro said on Tuesday.
“During the trial, we had a lot of feedback about OC Spray only being available to people aged 18 years and over, with many parents telling us that they wanted their 16 and 17-year-olds to have access as well."
Eligible people aged 16 and 17 will be able to buy, possess, carry and use controlled OC Spray, with consent required from parents or guardians who must not be prohibited persons.
Pepper spray provides a self defence option for young people, many of whom held down night-time jobs, Ms Finocchiaro said.
“The reality is that we already give 16-year-olds a lot of responsibility – they can drive a car, many of them have jobs and parents want assurance that their children can defend themselves in a dangerous situation."
Having access to OC spray could be the difference between life and death, or serious injury, the chief minister said.
A rigorous trial process had made sure police retained firm control over who had access to the spray, she told reporters in Darwin.
The new arrangements ban young people from taking OC Spray into school grounds.
They also expand pepper spray use within NT households, allowing residents and eligible visitors to deploy it for self-defence in "genuine emergency situations".
A husband for example would be able to buy OC Spray for his wife and children aged 16 and above for self-defence in their home.
Availability will also be extended to roles in security, hospitality, crowd control and licensed venues.
Since the trial began, 5,976 OC Spray canisters have been purchased in the territory.
Police have seized 69 canisters and identified 46 prohibited purchasers, representing 1.2 per cent of buyers.
“It is a stunning result to have a 99 per cent success rate with a reform of this magnitude," Ms Finocchiaro said.
"There's no question in my mind that this is a safe, non-lethal ability for everyday Australians to protect themselves."
WA is the only other jurisdiction in the country allowing the general sale of OC Spray.
