Page 3397 - Week 09 - Wednesday, 20 August 2008
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the witness protection program. He has performed roles in parliamentary liaison and he is somebody who has a long association with community policing, having been a team leader in the Territory Investigations Group earlier in his career with the AFP.
I have come to admire Commander Connelly for his straightforwardness and his very amenable character. Shane is someone who you can always approach and discuss matters about policing in the territory with. His knowledge and experience in community policing is second to none. He understands the issues, he understands the personalities and he understands what needs to be done to deliver good community policing on the ground.
I have to commend him for some of the advice he has given me in my time as police minister. In particular, I mention his assistance in identifying the issues that needed to be worked through with the control operations legislation, which the Assembly has recently passed. And his assistance in developing a workable regime for on-the-spot fines for a range of antisocial offences has been very important to me. I would like to thank him for his efforts in that particular regard.
Shane Connelly is well admired by the men and women of ACT Policing. He has been an important leader, but a person who has always kept his feet on the ground. I am sure that the extensive passion and commitment he has shown to community policing will serve him well in his new role. He goes to take on a very important role with the Australian Federal Police’s International Deployment Group. This particular piece of work will test his skills further and give him further experience and opportunity. I hope that at some stage in the future he will be able to bring those skills back to the ACT community.
In closing, Mr Speaker, I place on the record one of the more significant and high-profile matters that Commander Connelly has been responsible for recently. Commander Connelly was in charge of the overall planning and execution of the Beijing Olympic torch relay, perhaps one of the most significant security operations the Australian Federal Police have had to perform here in Canberra for many years. I was privileged to be present in the police operations centre whilst the relay was taking place and to see first hand Commander Connelly oversee the operation and provide a very high level of liaison, leadership and direction, not only to his fellow officers but also to representatives of the Chinese government and embassy, the Australian government and the ACT government. His calm, measured and affable character stands him in good stead in that very important role. The success of the Olympic torch relay can in no small part be put down to his ability and leadership.
I congratulate him on his new appointment and wish him all the best in this new and important role.
ACT Policing—Commander Shane Connelly
MR STEFANIAK (Ginninderra) (6.25): I am very glad that the attorney raised the issue of Shane Connelly departing. He started his new job on Monday. I reiterate what Simon Corbell has said about Shane Connelly.
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