Mr SETTER - 1997-05-01
I am not sure whether it is the result of the onset of the dry season, but the feedback I am receiving around Darwin at the moment is that people are very happy with the way things are going in their community, particularly in my electorate where a number of people have contacted my office complimenting the government on its recent initiatives. Is the Chief Minister receiving similar feedback in his electorate?
Mrs Hickey interjecting.
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition may laugh but, everywhere I go at the moment ...
Mr Bailey: Are you taking credit for the dry season?
Mr STONE: The member for Wanguri again interjects.
The reality is that, everywhere I go at the moment, people congratulate the Northern Territory government on the tough stand that it has taken over these people who have been wreaking havoc in our streets and in our parks and shopping centres. Parents are saying to me that, once again, their children are able to go to the corner store without being harassed by drunks, and women are able to ...
Mr Bailey: You have been in government for 20 years. Why did you let it get like that?
Mr STONE: The member for Wanguri interjects. Every time we have endeavoured to crack down on unacceptable behaviour, we have had to listen to the moans and the groans of the Labor Party which is soft on crime. Let people listening at home understand that, when we started this crackdown on the drunks and itinerants, we were attacked for it by the Labor Party. When we put the prisoners out on the streets to clean up the parks and the beaches, we were attacked for it by the Labor Party. The Labor Party has said that it will roll back mandatory sentencing. The Labor Party will roll back all the tough sentencing options that the CLP government has put in place.
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr STONE: I am absolutely delighted with the efforts of our police officers. I congratulate them. It is not the easiest job. Even though the member for Wanguri wants to talk over me when I am congratulating the police, I will say it again and again. I know it is a difficult job to deal with drunks and other people who behave in a totally unacceptable way, but this regime will be maintained. I also congratulate Correctional Services on the way that prisoners are being used to clean up, not only in Darwin but also in Alice Springs. This city has never looked better. The streets have never been quieter. We have the parks and the beaches back for the people to enjoy, and that will continue. I thought the issue was very well
Page 2119
summarised in an article that appeared in the NT News on Saturday 26 April: `Cops: why we arrest drunks'. I seek leave for that to be incorporated in Hansard.
Leave granted.
If your family is enjoying a picnic at Mindil Beach or
having champagne while the sun goes down at East Point,
are you going to end up at a sobering-up shelter?
Probably not. Police are not enforcing the 2 km law
just for the sake of it. We are targeting problem
behaviour, which has been the subject of constant
complaints from the public. If people's behaviour
attracts police attention and they are drunk, we will
use a range of tools, including the 2 km law, cautions,
moving people on, or taking them into custody, to deal
with the problem.
A primary objective of Darwin police station, for
example, is to reduce the incidence of social disorder
in Darwin. Senior Sergeant Sean Parnell said: `It is
part of a bigger strategy of dealing with antisocial
behaviour. If the worse crime a person commits is that
they happen by mistake to consume alcohol in an area
which is not exempt, they will probably be warned. It
is behaviour which draws our attention in the first
place. We then look at what tools are available to us
to deal with the problem. Police are told to be
professional in the way the law is enforced and, in the
final analysis, we are always accountable within the
law for our actions'.
The 2 km law prohibits the consumption of alcohol,
except in licensed premises, anywhere within 2 km of
licensed premises. This covers most of Darwin. There
are exemptions covering Mindil Beach markets on
Thursday nights, and Sunday afternoons during the Wet,
Vesteys Beach, the area in front of the Trailer Boat
Club, the cliffs of the Casuarina Coastal Reserve,
Gardens Ovals, the golf links and the Pee Wee Camp on
East Point. The Liquor Commission can grant special
exemptions - for example, to have a social function or
a family barbecue on the Esplanade. Police would take
action here only if beer cans are being thrown around,
if other members of the public are being annoyed, or
the behaviour is in breach of legislation such as the
Summary Offences Act.
Senior Sergeant Parnell said police discretion was
important. He said: `If we find an overseas
backpacker sitting on the footpath in Darwin with a can
of beer but causing no trouble, we would explain the
law to them and caution them. A person sitting on a
bench in the Smith Street Mall, who has been warned
previously, or who has led to complaints, would have
their alcohol tipped out or confiscated. If they are
drunk, they will be taken into protective custody and
taken to the sobering-up shelter'.
Commander Bob Fields said: `If you don't want to
contribute to the sense of community in Darwin with
responsible drinking and if you don't show respect and
consideration to others in the community, then it's up
to police to ensure you don't become a nuisance'.
Page 2120
The bottom line is what is acceptable to the public.
And from feedback to police, the public is fed up with
being accosted by drunks.
Page 2121
Mrs Hickey interjecting.
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition may laugh but, everywhere I go at the moment ...
Mr Bailey: Are you taking credit for the dry season?
Mr STONE: The member for Wanguri again interjects.
The reality is that, everywhere I go at the moment, people congratulate the Northern Territory government on the tough stand that it has taken over these people who have been wreaking havoc in our streets and in our parks and shopping centres. Parents are saying to me that, once again, their children are able to go to the corner store without being harassed by drunks, and women are able to ...
Mr Bailey: You have been in government for 20 years. Why did you let it get like that?
Mr STONE: The member for Wanguri interjects. Every time we have endeavoured to crack down on unacceptable behaviour, we have had to listen to the moans and the groans of the Labor Party which is soft on crime. Let people listening at home understand that, when we started this crackdown on the drunks and itinerants, we were attacked for it by the Labor Party. When we put the prisoners out on the streets to clean up the parks and the beaches, we were attacked for it by the Labor Party. The Labor Party has said that it will roll back mandatory sentencing. The Labor Party will roll back all the tough sentencing options that the CLP government has put in place.
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr STONE: I am absolutely delighted with the efforts of our police officers. I congratulate them. It is not the easiest job. Even though the member for Wanguri wants to talk over me when I am congratulating the police, I will say it again and again. I know it is a difficult job to deal with drunks and other people who behave in a totally unacceptable way, but this regime will be maintained. I also congratulate Correctional Services on the way that prisoners are being used to clean up, not only in Darwin but also in Alice Springs. This city has never looked better. The streets have never been quieter. We have the parks and the beaches back for the people to enjoy, and that will continue. I thought the issue was very well
Page 2119
summarised in an article that appeared in the NT News on Saturday 26 April: `Cops: why we arrest drunks'. I seek leave for that to be incorporated in Hansard.
Leave granted.
If your family is enjoying a picnic at Mindil Beach or
having champagne while the sun goes down at East Point,
are you going to end up at a sobering-up shelter?
Probably not. Police are not enforcing the 2 km law
just for the sake of it. We are targeting problem
behaviour, which has been the subject of constant
complaints from the public. If people's behaviour
attracts police attention and they are drunk, we will
use a range of tools, including the 2 km law, cautions,
moving people on, or taking them into custody, to deal
with the problem.
A primary objective of Darwin police station, for
example, is to reduce the incidence of social disorder
in Darwin. Senior Sergeant Sean Parnell said: `It is
part of a bigger strategy of dealing with antisocial
behaviour. If the worse crime a person commits is that
they happen by mistake to consume alcohol in an area
which is not exempt, they will probably be warned. It
is behaviour which draws our attention in the first
place. We then look at what tools are available to us
to deal with the problem. Police are told to be
professional in the way the law is enforced and, in the
final analysis, we are always accountable within the
law for our actions'.
The 2 km law prohibits the consumption of alcohol,
except in licensed premises, anywhere within 2 km of
licensed premises. This covers most of Darwin. There
are exemptions covering Mindil Beach markets on
Thursday nights, and Sunday afternoons during the Wet,
Vesteys Beach, the area in front of the Trailer Boat
Club, the cliffs of the Casuarina Coastal Reserve,
Gardens Ovals, the golf links and the Pee Wee Camp on
East Point. The Liquor Commission can grant special
exemptions - for example, to have a social function or
a family barbecue on the Esplanade. Police would take
action here only if beer cans are being thrown around,
if other members of the public are being annoyed, or
the behaviour is in breach of legislation such as the
Summary Offences Act.
Senior Sergeant Parnell said police discretion was
important. He said: `If we find an overseas
backpacker sitting on the footpath in Darwin with a can
of beer but causing no trouble, we would explain the
law to them and caution them. A person sitting on a
bench in the Smith Street Mall, who has been warned
previously, or who has led to complaints, would have
their alcohol tipped out or confiscated. If they are
drunk, they will be taken into protective custody and
taken to the sobering-up shelter'.
Commander Bob Fields said: `If you don't want to
contribute to the sense of community in Darwin with
responsible drinking and if you don't show respect and
consideration to others in the community, then it's up
to police to ensure you don't become a nuisance'.
Page 2120
The bottom line is what is acceptable to the public.
And from feedback to police, the public is fed up with
being accosted by drunks.
Page 2121
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016