Page 1680 - Week 06 - Wednesday, 13 May 2015
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It is also worth noting that efficiency dividends apply at the federal level as well, as members would know. And it is worth noting that they also apply to agencies that receive government appropriations, such as the Australian Federal Police. There is a process currently underway within ACT Policing where I understand ACT police are reviewing their structures and operations. Also, the government is currently negotiating a service-level agreement with the federal government. I think it is fair enough in this context to let those processes continue to roll out.
I am not aware that there have been or will be any front-line police services cut in the ACT. I understand that no staff have been lost at this point in time either. I know that during ongoing discussions police have raised this as a possibility. I do acknowledge that, like Mr Hanson, I would not like to see this occur.
I point out, though, as Ms Burch has already done in her remarks, that ACT Policing has made it clear that general patrol duties, operations centre and crime teams will remain its priority. I believe ACT Policing has been functioning very well in the past two years that the savings measure has applied. Ms Burch also noted that the Chief Police Officer has assured her that ACT Policing will meet the savings required for the 2015-16 year from non-operational functions.
There has been some discussion of the ability of the police to do their job, whether they have enough staff and resources. I would like to acknowledge that ACT Policing have been doing a very good job. One of the indicators of the good job the police are doing is the recent crime statistics in the ACT. There have been some good outcomes in key areas.
For example, the 2014 crime statistics show a decrease in the number of reported crimes in Canberra from the previous year: 28,105 crimes were reported in Canberra in 2014, compared to 29,695 in 2013. There has been a trend of crime reduction over the last six years. And, as we see with the quarterly police statistics that are presented in this place, a range of key indicators have seen downward trends. That that is both very positive for the community and a positive reflection on the work of ACT Policing.
This is occurring at the same time that Canberra has continued to grow, which I believe makes the statistics even more impressive. As ACT police said at the time these 2014 statistics were released—the ones I cited earlier—Canberra has a reputation as one of Australia’s safest cities.
I did look carefully at the issue that Mr Hanson raised in his motion about the provisional improvement notice. Again, I think it is worth reflecting on the context for that. The notice is not an indication of staff numbers or funding. It is about the way ACT Policing organised its operations in a particular area, and it responded to the improvement notice. As I said, it is important to acknowledge these issues for what they are, and to put them in context and reflect on the actual detail of them rather than engage in hyperbole or scare tactics.
It is worth repeating some of the facts pointed out by the Australian Institute of Criminology: the ACT recurrent expenditure on police services per head of adult
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