❓ Question regarding community reception to new home invasion laws. Minister responds, highlighting community support for mandatory minimum sentencing and criticising the opposition's stance.
AnsweredQoN 140Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
POLICE —
HOME INVASION LAWS
140. Mr I.C. BLAYNEY to the
Minister for Police:
Firstly, I thank the minister for attending a community forum
in Geraldton last Saturday. Can the minister please update the house on how the
government's tough new laws on home invasion have been received in the
community?
HOME INVASION LAWS
140. Mr I.C. BLAYNEY to the
Minister for Police:
Firstly, I thank the minister for attending a community forum
in Geraldton last Saturday. Can the minister please update the house on how the
government's tough new laws on home invasion have been received in the
community?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for Geraldton for
the invitation to visit his electorate and attend a community forum, which was
very well patronised by citizens of his electorate. It is fair to say that the
people who attended the community forum on Saturday were thoroughly sick and
tired of the slap-on-the-wrist approach that they perceived has prevailed
around the issue of recidivist home burglars. They were very relieved to hear
that the government has new legislation in train to address that issue. I think
the member for Geraldton will agree that the prevailing theme of the community
forum was that a number of people who attended that community forum had had
their houses broken into more than once and many of them had seen the
perpetrators of those burglaries go to court and they had been unhappy with the
consequences of the actions —
[Interruption from the gallery.]
Mrs L.M. HARVEY :
They have been most unhappy with what they perceive to be a gap between the
consequences for these actions and the community's expectations. One of
the comments made was that they were thoroughly sick of hearing about maximum
sentences; they want minimum mandatory sentencing for repeat home burglars, and
they were most relieved that the government is going to provide their community
with some relief from the activities of these prolific recidivist home burglar
offenders.
I really enjoyed meeting the member for Geraldton's
constituents, and I particularly enjoyed the fact that they believed that our
legislation was playing directly into their primary concern, and their primary
concern was that they wanted to feel safe and to be safe in their own homes.
They spoke very highly of the support they had received from police —
Ms M.M. Quirk interjected.
Mrs L.M. HARVEY : I
think it is really interesting; I know people over there do not like it, and I
will be interested to hear whether the Labor Party is going to support our
mandatory minimum penalties for repeat home burglars.
Ms
M.M. Quirk interjected.
Mrs
L.M. HARVEY : The member for Girrawheen might want to talk to the occupants
of the 420 dwellings that have been burgled in her electorate in the last 12
months.
Several members interjected.
Mrs
L.M. HARVEY : She might want to tell them —
Several members interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Members! Member for Girrawheen, I call you to order for the first
time. Minister, I want you to direct your answer through the Chair.
Mrs
L.M. HARVEY : I am pleased to do so, Mr Speaker. My —
Ms
M.M. Quirk : You say you'll do it, but you don't actually do
it.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Girrawheen!
Mrs
L.M. HARVEY : I look forward to the member for Girrawheen standing in the
chamber to support our mandatory minimum penalties for repeat home burglars,
and our mandatory minimum penalties for violent home invaders.
Mr
J.R. Quigley interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Butler, I call you to order for the first time.
Mrs
L.M. HARVEY : I think it is most interesting that the member for Butler
chooses to interject on me because he was standing up to say what a shocking
thing it is going to be to see mandatory minimum penalties for repeat burglars
and for violent home invaders.
Mr B.S. Wyatt interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Victoria Park!
Mrs L.M. HARVEY :
Perhaps the member for lawyers over there, the member for Butler, might like to
go to the 1 820 victims of home burglaries in his electorate over the past
three years and explain to them why mandatory minimum penalties are not going
to be a good solution.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Victoria Park, I call you to order for the third time; member for
Butler, for the second time. My advice to you today is: do not tempt fate.
Okay?
Mrs L.M. HARVEY :
There have been more than 1 000 victims of home burglary in the member for
Victoria Park's electorate over the last year—1 114 homes have
been broken into in his electorate. We know —
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Girrawheen, I call you to order for the second time; member for
Armadale, for the first time.
Mrs L.M. HARVEY :
There were 907 homes broken into in the member for Armadale's
electorate over the last financial year. We are offering a solution, and our
solution will make the work of our police officers worthwhile.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Armadale, I call you to order for the second time. Minister, I think
you have made your point. Direct your answer through the Chair.
Mrs L.M. HARVEY :
To wrap up, our police officers are out there. We are recruiting 550 additional
police —
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Cannington, I call you to order for the first time.
Mr P. Papalia interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Warnbro, I call you to order for the first time. Minister, direct
your answer through the Chair, and bring it to a conclusion, please.
Mr
P.C. Tinley interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Willagee, I call you to order for the first time.
Mrs
L.M. HARVEY : We have made our commitment. We are on track to deliver 550
additional police and police auxiliary officers. Part of that commitment is
about training an additional 200 detectives to put into volume crime teams to
round up these prolific offenders and bring them before the courts. As a result
of the legislation that we have introduced to this Parliament, when the police
round up these people and take them to court, they know that they will be put away
and sentenced for a mandatory minimum term of two years. That gives the police
great comfort that they can go about their duties and know that their work is
worthwhile because they see a result when these people go behind bars. I can go
out there hand on heart into communities such as the member for Geraldton's
and say —
Dr
A.D. Buti interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Armadale, I call you to order for the third time.
Mrs
L.M. HARVEY : We have a solution to put on the table when the Labor
opposition had no solution whatsoever except to oppose our solution. The member
for Butler should go to work in Labor's policy vacuum and come up with
something else. We think we have something that will work, and I look forward
to the support of those opposite as I bring it to the chamber.
the invitation to visit his electorate and attend a community forum, which was
very well patronised by citizens of his electorate. It is fair to say that the
people who attended the community forum on Saturday were thoroughly sick and
tired of the slap-on-the-wrist approach that they perceived has prevailed
around the issue of recidivist home burglars. They were very relieved to hear
that the government has new legislation in train to address that issue. I think
the member for Geraldton will agree that the prevailing theme of the community
forum was that a number of people who attended that community forum had had
their houses broken into more than once and many of them had seen the
perpetrators of those burglaries go to court and they had been unhappy with the
consequences of the actions —
[Interruption from the gallery.]
Mrs L.M. HARVEY :
They have been most unhappy with what they perceive to be a gap between the
consequences for these actions and the community's expectations. One of
the comments made was that they were thoroughly sick of hearing about maximum
sentences; they want minimum mandatory sentencing for repeat home burglars, and
they were most relieved that the government is going to provide their community
with some relief from the activities of these prolific recidivist home burglar
offenders.
I really enjoyed meeting the member for Geraldton's
constituents, and I particularly enjoyed the fact that they believed that our
legislation was playing directly into their primary concern, and their primary
concern was that they wanted to feel safe and to be safe in their own homes.
They spoke very highly of the support they had received from police —
Ms M.M. Quirk interjected.
Mrs L.M. HARVEY : I
think it is really interesting; I know people over there do not like it, and I
will be interested to hear whether the Labor Party is going to support our
mandatory minimum penalties for repeat home burglars.
Ms
M.M. Quirk interjected.
Mrs
L.M. HARVEY : The member for Girrawheen might want to talk to the occupants
of the 420 dwellings that have been burgled in her electorate in the last 12
months.
Several members interjected.
Mrs
L.M. HARVEY : She might want to tell them —
Several members interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Members! Member for Girrawheen, I call you to order for the first
time. Minister, I want you to direct your answer through the Chair.
Mrs
L.M. HARVEY : I am pleased to do so, Mr Speaker. My —
Ms
M.M. Quirk : You say you'll do it, but you don't actually do
it.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Girrawheen!
Mrs
L.M. HARVEY : I look forward to the member for Girrawheen standing in the
chamber to support our mandatory minimum penalties for repeat home burglars,
and our mandatory minimum penalties for violent home invaders.
Mr
J.R. Quigley interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Butler, I call you to order for the first time.
Mrs
L.M. HARVEY : I think it is most interesting that the member for Butler
chooses to interject on me because he was standing up to say what a shocking
thing it is going to be to see mandatory minimum penalties for repeat burglars
and for violent home invaders.
Mr B.S. Wyatt interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Victoria Park!
Mrs L.M. HARVEY :
Perhaps the member for lawyers over there, the member for Butler, might like to
go to the 1 820 victims of home burglaries in his electorate over the past
three years and explain to them why mandatory minimum penalties are not going
to be a good solution.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Victoria Park, I call you to order for the third time; member for
Butler, for the second time. My advice to you today is: do not tempt fate.
Okay?
Mrs L.M. HARVEY :
There have been more than 1 000 victims of home burglary in the member for
Victoria Park's electorate over the last year—1 114 homes have
been broken into in his electorate. We know —
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Girrawheen, I call you to order for the second time; member for
Armadale, for the first time.
Mrs L.M. HARVEY :
There were 907 homes broken into in the member for Armadale's
electorate over the last financial year. We are offering a solution, and our
solution will make the work of our police officers worthwhile.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Armadale, I call you to order for the second time. Minister, I think
you have made your point. Direct your answer through the Chair.
Mrs L.M. HARVEY :
To wrap up, our police officers are out there. We are recruiting 550 additional
police —
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Cannington, I call you to order for the first time.
Mr P. Papalia interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Warnbro, I call you to order for the first time. Minister, direct
your answer through the Chair, and bring it to a conclusion, please.
Mr
P.C. Tinley interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Willagee, I call you to order for the first time.
Mrs
L.M. HARVEY : We have made our commitment. We are on track to deliver 550
additional police and police auxiliary officers. Part of that commitment is
about training an additional 200 detectives to put into volume crime teams to
round up these prolific offenders and bring them before the courts. As a result
of the legislation that we have introduced to this Parliament, when the police
round up these people and take them to court, they know that they will be put away
and sentenced for a mandatory minimum term of two years. That gives the police
great comfort that they can go about their duties and know that their work is
worthwhile because they see a result when these people go behind bars. I can go
out there hand on heart into communities such as the member for Geraldton's
and say —
Dr
A.D. Buti interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Armadale, I call you to order for the third time.
Mrs
L.M. HARVEY : We have a solution to put on the table when the Labor
opposition had no solution whatsoever except to oppose our solution. The member
for Butler should go to work in Labor's policy vacuum and come up with
something else. We think we have something that will work, and I look forward
to the support of those opposite as I bring it to the chamber.
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