A former Tasmanian premier regrets not doing more to ensure the safety of children in state care, following harrowing evidence at an inquiry into sexual abuse.
David Bartlett, premier from 2008-11, also questioned whether the state's troubled Ashley Youth Detention Centre should remain open.
A commission of inquiry into child sexual abuse in state institutions wrapped up public hearings in September and will deliver a final report by May.
It was told Ashley, which has operated for more than 20 years, has had a culture of brutality towards children and has withstood attempts to change its culture.
The state Liberal government pledged last year to close the centre by the end of 2024 and replace it with new facilities.
"Like many Tasmanians and Australians I've looked on in horror ... at the evidence given and also the current situation at Ashley," Mr Bartlett, Labor MP from 2004-11, told ABC Radio on Wednesday.
"(I have) had to question myself why as minister for education (and) as premier for three years, why I didn't do more. What stopped me from doing more?"
Mr Bartlett said he was "very uncomfortable" with the centre remaining open.
"Can the minister walk in there and say 'right this place is closed?' Probably. Let's find (the detainees) a place to live so we can shut this place down," he said.
The national and state children's commissioners and human rights groups are among those calling for the centre to be shut immediately.
In a recent report, the United Nations raised serious concerns about the practice of keeping children in solitary confinement at the centre.
Mr Bartlett said his government pushed hard to introduce learning programs for children at Ashley but also failed in "so many ways".
"We were fighting culture at Ashley. That was my fault in retrospect too, I didn't push hard enough," he said.
He said governments have been hamstrung by a lack of transparency, and information not being provided to ministers due to a fear of the risks it would create.
The inquiry has also been told the Launceston General Hospital didn't provide the health department with full information about allegations against pedophile nurse James Geoffrey Griffin during investigations following his death.
Griffin worked at the hospital for nearly two decades and took his own life in October 2019 after being charged with multiple child sexual abuse offences.
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