Ms CARNEY - 2008-04-29
The Minister for Central Australia was in Alice Springs recently and was interviewed on 8HA. In relation to your announcement of 60 extra police over two years in four locations across the Territory, your ministerial colleague said: ‘We probably need the whole 60 here’ - meaning Alice Springs. Your new minister gets full marks for telling the truth. Before you knock this unusual trait out of him, will you do what he and the residents of Alice Springs want; namely, deliver 60 more police to Alice Springs? Or, in the alternative, will you admit that currently there are, quite simply, not enough police in Alice Springs?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, this is a government that is proud of our record of increasing funding for our Northern Territory Police, and increasing police numbers significantly right across the Northern Territory. Since we came to government in 2001, the police budget has increased by just over 60%, and there are more than 200 extra police out across the Northern Territory community. Already announced in this budget that the Treasurer will hand down next week, there is funding for an additional 60 police right across the Northern Territory who will go to the front line.
Of course, in the Closing the Gap policy that the government announced last year, there was funding for an additional 40 police. Overall, at the end of this budget cycle, there will be 300 more police out across the communities of the Northern Territory than when the CLP were in office. It is a very significant increase right across the Northern Territory, including in Alice Springs. Since the O’Sullivan Report came out, and the government’s commitment to fund 200 extra police across the Northern Territory, 33 of those police resources have gone to the Central Australian region. Out of the 60 extra police that have been announced as part of this budget, there will be additional police for Alice Springs.
We stand on our record in our commitment to our police force and law and order. What do the CLP have? They have a very sad and sorry history of underfunding our police for the years that they were in office. My commitment to the good people of Alice Springs is there are more police coming, and they are coming as a result of this government’s commitment to our police force, and this government being able to deliver on a strong economy, strong economic growth, that gives us the capacity to put extra funds into police, health, education, infrastructure right across the Northern Territory.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, this is a government that is proud of our record of increasing funding for our Northern Territory Police, and increasing police numbers significantly right across the Northern Territory. Since we came to government in 2001, the police budget has increased by just over 60%, and there are more than 200 extra police out across the Northern Territory community. Already announced in this budget that the Treasurer will hand down next week, there is funding for an additional 60 police right across the Northern Territory who will go to the front line.
Of course, in the Closing the Gap policy that the government announced last year, there was funding for an additional 40 police. Overall, at the end of this budget cycle, there will be 300 more police out across the communities of the Northern Territory than when the CLP were in office. It is a very significant increase right across the Northern Territory, including in Alice Springs. Since the O’Sullivan Report came out, and the government’s commitment to fund 200 extra police across the Northern Territory, 33 of those police resources have gone to the Central Australian region. Out of the 60 extra police that have been announced as part of this budget, there will be additional police for Alice Springs.
We stand on our record in our commitment to our police force and law and order. What do the CLP have? They have a very sad and sorry history of underfunding our police for the years that they were in office. My commitment to the good people of Alice Springs is there are more police coming, and they are coming as a result of this government’s commitment to our police force, and this government being able to deliver on a strong economy, strong economic growth, that gives us the capacity to put extra funds into police, health, education, infrastructure right across the Northern Territory.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016