Multiple community safety failures resulting from Daniel Andrews’ mishandled COVID-19 response have been confirmed today in Parliament Accounts and Estimates Committee (PAEC) hearings.
Throughout this pandemic, frontline Victoria Police members have been left to clean up Labor’s mess on hotel quarantine, border closures and enforcement. This has resulted in several concerning community safety failures, including;
- The closure of community access and counter services at 25 police stations across regional and metropolitan Victoria.
- Only 52 of Melbourne’s 212 metropolitan train stations are currently manned – despite Minister Lisa Neville stating 83 stations would remain patrolled in April 2020.
- Only 1 in 5 non-indigenous Victorian youth offenders received a referral to a diversion program in 2019-20, compared to 66 per cent in NSW, and more than 50 per cent in QLD and WA.
Furthermore, under questioning, Chief Commissioner Shane Patton was unable to confirm when PSO’s would be returned to platforms or rule out further police station closures due to resourcing shortages over coming months.
It’s now clear to see that Daniel Andrews’ failure to effectively manage Victoria’s COVID-19 response has left frontline police stretched, community safety worsening and local communities fending for themselves.
Comments attributable to David Southwick MP, Shadow Minister for Police & Community Safety:
“With offending up, prevention down and fewer crimes being solved, it’s clear Daniel Andrews has dropped the ball on community safety.
“Policing in Victoria needs a reset with a clear focus on getting police back into the community and preventing crime before it occurs.
“Community safety has become yet another COVID casualty under Daniel Andrews, leaving ordinary Victorians feeling less safe and fending for themselves.”
