Queensland Premier David Crisafulli has claimed victim of crime numbers dropped in the first six months of 2025, saying he had begun to "turn things around" since the 2024 election.
However, he has come under fire for leaning on a different set of figures to those he used during the campaign, with critics claiming his "adult crime, adult time" laws might not have had an impact.
Mr Crisafulli vowed during the campaign to resign after his first term if his government did not reduce the 280,000 victims of crime as per Australian Bureau of Statistics data.
Instead of ABS figures, the premier on Tuesday turned to Queensland Police data to show victim numbers were falling.
Police data for the first six months of 2025 showed victim numbers had dropped by 5.7 per cent compared to 2024, he said.
The figures revealed victim numbers across 12 offences including murder, assault, robbery, coercive control, break and enter and stealing cars had dropped from 75,084 to 72,588.
It also showed that break-in victims dropped by 12 per cent, robberies by 13 per cent and car thefts by 6.4 per cent in 2025's first six months compared to the same period in the previous year.
"It is proof that if you do back the police, if you do put in place those resources, if you do focus on early intervention, you can turn things around," Mr Crisafulli said.
But the premier was criticised for using police and not data from the statistics bureau to gauge victim numbers.
"It's a different data set, and it doesn't necessarily show that the ABS number that the premier referred to in the election campaign has gone down at all," Youth Advocacy Centre chief executive Katherine Hayes told AAP.
"Data is so slippery."
Despite claims of a youth crime crisis, Ms Hayes said Queensland crime had been decreasing since reaching a post-COVID high in 2023.
"The only conclusion is, you cannot say that the introduction of the adult crime, adult time laws has caused a sudden drop in crime," she said.
According to 2023-24 figures from the statistics bureau, 340,681 offenders were proceeded against by police across Australia - the lowest number since 2008-09.
In 2023-24 Queensland had 80,316 offenders - a three per cent decrease from the previous year.
A criminologist said the public would be confused by the premier using different data to gauge victim numbers.
"Previously, we were talking about juvenile crime, then we were talking about crime rates," University of Queensland Associate Professor Renee Zahnow told AAP.
"Now we're talking about overall victims of crime, which is very different to the point we started on.
"Using data from different data sources is not consistent over time ... it is confusing for the public and it's not transparent."
The Labor opposition took the premier to task for not including "other theft" in Tuesday's data, saying it meant thousands of Queenslanders were no longer considered victims under the LNP government.
"He's cut corners, cherry-picked, and removed offences that should matter," opposition leader Steven Miles said.
"Victims of other theft could be the local independent grocer who has had stock swiped from their shelves, or someone who's had items stolen from their car."
Mr Crisafulli defended not including "other theft", saying the offence may not relate to a person.
"I wouldn't be standing here saying to you that someone who's pinched a marker from the side of the road, that's not a victim ... it's a crime," he said.
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