Page 3259 - Week 11 - Thursday, 13 September 1990
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launch - called A Life of Crime, by Paul Wilson, who, Mr Collaery will note, is an assistant director at the Australian Institute of Criminology, Dr Wilson says:
My professional training and experience teaches me that society obtains diminishing returns from pouring more and more money into police forces. As I argued earlier, most crimes are committed well away from the police presence; over and above a certain level -
he qualifies it -
an increase in the size of a police force will make little if any difference to the crime rate. Such a view is clearly at odds with those held by senior police (and others) ...
"And others", of course, by Mr Collaery's interjection, may include Mr Collaery. I am quite happy to withdraw that if you would say it does not. I do not hear a "doesn't".
Mr Collaery: I am waiting for the Grants Commission judgment.
MR MOORE: In fact, while we are on Mr Collaery, I notice on page 136 - it is a little bit of a digression - that Dr Wilson says:
Despite the lack of any clear evidence of a need for the Territory to have its own prison, some politicians are positively panting to build such an institution.
He goes on to say:
Like the Queensland of old, reactionary politics and policies are creeping into the capital's culture.
But much more important is what we should be doing with the money we are spending on the police. We should be looking at reducing crime in the first place. I will give just one more quote:
Two types of crime prevention have been proposed.
He is talking about propositions from people in the Institute of Criminology. He continues:
The first, community crime-prevention, underlines the importance of using community groups and resources to improve the quality of life in local areas. By providing recreational, employment and training opportunities for the young, for example, it is possible to reduce the amount of juvenile delinquency in the community.
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