Page 4802 - Week 13 - Wednesday, 1 November 2017
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(ii) in response to the growing ACT population and geographical footprint, the Government is investing in the future of ACT Policing with the 2017-18 Budget providing $2 million to review current operating models and infrastructure to assist the Government and ACT Policing to make informed evidence-based decisions for policing in the ACT over the coming years; and
(2) calls on the Government to continue to support ACT Policing as a well-resourced, highly trained and dedicated community policing organisation that serves the Canberra community well.”.
Canberra benefits from a hardworking, dedicated and innovative police force that the government funds to meet the needs of our community. The community can be assured that this government is committed to providing ACT Policing with the funding and resources it needs now and into the future to ensure that Canberra remains a safe place to live. Overall, the ACT experiences low crime rates compared to other jurisdictions. The community has ACT Policing to thank for playing the key role in keeping crime low.
In 2016-17, ACT Policing reported an increase in calls requiring a police response. This is something we will continue to monitor with ACT Policing. However, on balance, according to the most recent criminal justice statistical profile, in the 12 months to March 2017 the total reported incidents and number of offences has increased only marginally by 0.4 per cent and 0.5 per cent respectively.
The five-year trends in the ACT demonstrate a stable picture for the overall volume of reported incidents and offences. The ACT also has comparably lower victimisation rates across the personal crime categories than is the case in other jurisdictions.
Crime rates do fluctuate, though, with some crime rates increasing while others decrease. The ACT is not immune to spikes in crime. The government and the ACT police continue to monitor these changes and respond as required. For example, the ACT Policing annual report 2016-17 highlights that while overall property offences decreased by 1,507 offences, or seven per cent, in 2016-17, offences against the person increased by 484 offences, or 14.8 per cent.
The increase in offences against the person can mainly be attributed to the greater community and government focus on family violence. To illustrate, assaults reported in the home increased by 18.9 per cent in 2016-17. This increase is mirrored by an increase in family violence matters, the majority of which occur in the home, with 44.7 per cent of all assaults reported to ACT Policing being family violence related. The increase in reporting suggests that there is growing confidence to report family violence incidents to police. This is something we will continue to encourage as we bring family violence out of the shadows and ensure that those experiencing it get the help and support they need.
To address family violence, in the 2017-18 budget the total safer families package is $23.5 million over four years for a range of initiatives. As part of this funding package, in 2016-17 the government provided $1.18 million over four years to increase
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