Page 1568 - Week 06 - Tuesday, 17 May 1994
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Only this afternoon we tabled in this place our Community Safety Committee's first report on crime prevention strategies for Civic to address what last year was the Liberal Party's favourite drum to beat. They were constantly beating the drum last year and saying, "Shock, horror! Civic is a terribly dangerous place to be in or to work in. You are going to be mugged in Civic more than you are going to be mugged anywhere else in Australia. It is the most dangerous place in the world. The Government should do something about it". There were sensational press releases. We have gone about developing a strategy for a safer Civic in a very well thought out and coordinated manner. We have produced today not just the committee's report but a range of Government responses to that report, indicating that we have this issue well in hand. To suggest that the Government is unconcerned, does not care or is not interested in crime and safety in this community is simply stuff and nonsense.
What we do express concern about is this constant attempt to whip up sensationalism. What do we have today? We have the NRMA's report on car break-ins, which shows that - Mr Humphries did not say this - the rate of car theft and break-in per 1,000 policies is 13.9 in metropolitan Sydney and 5.3 in the ACT - - -
Mr Humphries: I did say that, thank you very much.
MR CONNOLLY: He did say that the rate here is better than it is in Sydney, but he did not say that it is about a third of the rate in Sydney. Madam Speaker, Canberra continues to be a very safe place in which to live, although it is a matter of concern that we had an increase in the rate per 1,000 policies of some 7 per cent. Why would that be? Of course, Madam Speaker, that would be because we have seen a significant increase of some 26 per cent in 12 months in the rate of car break-ins - that is, the car window being smashed and gear being stolen from the car. Car break-ins went from about 1,200 to about - let us round it up - 1,600, about a 25 per cent increase, from 1992 to 1993. If, however, we went back to 1989, when there were 2,157 break-ins, we could say that everything is rosy, because we have had a reduction from 2,100 to 1,500, so we have had a 25 per cent reduction in car break-ins. Statistics are what you make of them, but it is true that we have a problem with opportunistic break-ins.
What does the Opposition do? It whacks out its press releases and tries to put fear and loathing into the community by saying, "Crime is on the rampage. The Government could not care less. Shock, horror!". What does the Government do? This morning I was at a press conference with the acting assistant commissioner of police for the ACT, the Acting Chief Police Officer, and we gave the public some very rational advice as to what to do about this. This is the classic type of opportunistic crime. The motor vehicle break-in is an entry level crime. It is, by and large, committed by young persons. It is committed in a very opportunistic manner, in the sense that people, by and large, do not plot and plan this type of crime. When they see a parked car with a handbag, a camera, a personal laptop computer or other valuable items on the front seat, there is a tendency and a temptation to do the quick smash and grab. We have had - - -
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