❓ The question accuses the government of hindering frontline policing by reducing civilian staff and not providing adequate funding. The Premier defends the government's record, highlighting investments in technology and increased police numbers, while attacking the opposition's past performance.
AnsweredQoN 407Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
I refer the Premier to the address to the Western Australian Police Union’s annual conference yesterday by the Commissioner of Police, Karl O’Callaghan, in which he outlined his plan to restore the basics of police work such as patrolling and curbing antisocial behaviour. (1) Given that the Government has reduced civilian staff numbers in the Police Service at the same time as administrative workloads have dramatically increased, will the Premier admit that his Government has forced many sworn officers to now do paperwork rather than police work? (2) Given the Labor Party’s pre-election promise to ensure better front-line policing, why has the Government refused to provide any additional funding to allow Commissioner O’Callaghan to carry out his plan? Dr G.I. GALLOP
AnswerView source ↗
(1)-(2) The hypocrisy of the Opposition on policing issues is extraordinary. When we came to government, a major project was being considered for communications technology and information technology in the Police Service that was capable of releasing a lot of police from paperwork so that they could do front-line activities. However, the former Government had not even funded that project in its budget. We had to find the money and put it into the Delta Communications and Information Technology and computer aided dispatch and communications services programs. That is what we have done. The advice we have had is that as a result of the significant investment we will make, it will be possible to get more front-line policing in Western Australia. The second thing that we have done is to fund extra police officers, who are needed in Western Australia. We have done that to the tune of 250 extra officers. We have currently achieved 175 extra officers, and by the end of the year we will have achieved the extra 250 officers. On top of that, the report of the Royal Commission Into Whether There Has Been Any Corrupt or Criminal Conduct by Western Australian Police Officers has put forward some very good ideas on how policing can be improved in Western Australia. Those recommendations will need to be implemented in consultation with the new Commissioner of Police. We will be talking to the new Commissioner of Police about all these issues, including civilianisation, police numbers, resourcing, technology and communications issues in the Police Service, to make sure that we achieve all the results that the royal commission has indicated can be achieved if the framework for policing in the twenty-first century is right. We are very proud of our record. We have supported individual police officers through extra numbers and occupational safety. Ms S.E. Walker: They are nowhere to be seen. Have you been talking to them? Dr G.I. GALLOP: The Liberals were in power for eight years. Did they bring legislation into this Parliament to give police officers the ability to use the occupational health and safety legislation to protect their interests? No. Who did it? The Labor Government did it. Which Government gave police officers the right of appeal to the Western Australian Industrial Relations Commission? The Labor Government did it. As the Minister for State Development has said, the Labor Party is the political party that supports working people; it is the political party that advocates for the worker in this community. That is what we have done for the Police Service. The Liberal Party has just arrived; it has just discovered the Police Service. We came into government on a platform of objectives, which we have worked through comprehensively. We now have a new set of objectives that have been provided by the royal commission. Just as we systematically worked through our campaign platform objectives, we will systematically work through the recommendations of the royal commission.
(1) Given that the Government has reduced civilian staff numbers in the Police Service at the same time as administrative workloads have dramatically increased, will the Premier admit that his Government has forced many sworn officers to now do paperwork rather than police work? (2) Given the Labor Party’s pre-election promise to ensure better front-line policing, why has the Government refused to provide any additional funding to allow Commissioner O’Callaghan to carry out his plan? Dr G.I. GALLOP replied: (1)-(2) The hypocrisy of the Opposition on policing issues is extraordinary. When we came to government, a major project was being considered for communications technology and information technology in the Police Service that was capable of releasing a lot of police from paperwork so that they could do front-line activities. However, the former Government had not even funded that project in its budget. We had to find the money and put it into the Delta Communications and Information Technology and computer aided dispatch and communications services programs. That is what we have done. The advice we have had is that as a result of the significant investment we will make, it will be possible to get more front-line policing in Western Australia. The second thing that we have done is to fund extra police officers, who are needed in Western Australia. We have done that to the tune of 250 extra officers. We have currently achieved 175 extra officers, and by the end of the year we will have achieved the extra 250 officers. On top of that, the report of the Royal Commission Into Whether There Has Been Any Corrupt or Criminal Conduct by Western Australian Police Officers has put forward some very good ideas on how policing can be improved in Western Australia. Those recommendations will need to be implemented in consultation with the new Commissioner of Police. We will be talking to the new Commissioner of Police about all these issues, including civilianisation, police numbers, resourcing, technology and communications issues in the Police Service, to make sure that we achieve all the results that the royal commission has indicated can be achieved if the framework for policing in the twenty-first century is right. We are very proud of our record. We have supported individual police officers through extra numbers and occupational safety. Ms S.E. Walker: They are nowhere to be seen. Have you been talking to them? Dr G.I. GALLOP: The Liberals were in power for eight years. Did they bring legislation into this Parliament to give police officers the ability to use the occupational health and safety legislation to protect their interests? No. Who did it? The Labor Government did it. Which Government gave police officers the right of appeal to the Western Australian Industrial Relations Commission? The Labor Government did it. As the Minister for State Development has said, the Labor Party is the political party that supports working people; it is the political party that advocates for the worker in this community. That is what we have done for the Police Service. The Liberal Party has just arrived; it has just discovered the Police Service. We came into government on a platform of objectives, which we have worked through comprehensively. We now have a new set of objectives that have been provided by the royal commission. Just as we systematically worked through our campaign platform objectives, we will systematically work through the recommendations of the royal commission.
(2) Given the Labor Party’s pre-election promise to ensure better front-line policing, why has the Government refused to provide any additional funding to allow Commissioner O’Callaghan to carry out his plan? Dr G.I. GALLOP replied: (1)-(2) The hypocrisy of the Opposition on policing issues is extraordinary. When we came to government, a major project was being considered for communications technology and information technology in the Police Service that was capable of releasing a lot of police from paperwork so that they could do front-line activities. However, the former Government had not even funded that project in its budget. We had to find the money and put it into the Delta Communications and Information Technology and computer aided dispatch and communications services programs. That is what we have done. The advice we have had is that as a result of the significant investment we will make, it will be possible to get more front-line policing in Western Australia. The second thing that we have done is to fund extra police officers, who are needed in Western Australia. We have done that to the tune of 250 extra officers. We have currently achieved 175 extra officers, and by the end of the year we will have achieved the extra 250 officers. On top of that, the report of the Royal Commission Into Whether There Has Been Any Corrupt or Criminal Conduct by Western Australian Police Officers has put forward some very good ideas on how policing can be improved in Western Australia. Those recommendations will need to be implemented in consultation with the new Commissioner of Police. We will be talking to the new Commissioner of Police about all these issues, including civilianisation, police numbers, resourcing, technology and communications issues in the Police Service, to make sure that we achieve all the results that the royal commission has indicated can be achieved if the framework for policing in the twenty-first century is right. We are very proud of our record. We have supported individual police officers through extra numbers and occupational safety. Ms S.E. Walker: They are nowhere to be seen. Have you been talking to them? Dr G.I. GALLOP: The Liberals were in power for eight years. Did they bring legislation into this Parliament to give police officers the ability to use the occupational health and safety legislation to protect their interests? No. Who did it? The Labor Government did it. Which Government gave police officers the right of appeal to the Western Australian Industrial Relations Commission? The Labor Government did it. As the Minister for State Development has said, the Labor Party is the political party that supports working people; it is the political party that advocates for the worker in this community. That is what we have done for the Police Service. The Liberal Party has just arrived; it has just discovered the Police Service. We came into government on a platform of objectives, which we have worked through comprehensively. We now have a new set of objectives that have been provided by the royal commission. Just as we systematically worked through our campaign platform objectives, we will systematically work through the recommendations of the royal commission.
Dr G.I. GALLOP replied: (1)-(2) The hypocrisy of the Opposition on policing issues is extraordinary. When we came to government, a major project was being considered for communications technology and information technology in the Police Service that was capable of releasing a lot of police from paperwork so that they could do front-line activities. However, the former Government had not even funded that project in its budget. We had to find the money and put it into the Delta Communications and Information Technology and computer aided dispatch and communications services programs. That is what we have done. The advice we have had is that as a result of the significant investment we will make, it will be possible to get more front-line policing in Western Australia. The second thing that we have done is to fund extra police officers, who are needed in Western Australia. We have done that to the tune of 250 extra officers. We have currently achieved 175 extra officers, and by the end of the year we will have achieved the extra 250 officers. On top of that, the report of the Royal Commission Into Whether There Has Been Any Corrupt or Criminal Conduct by Western Australian Police Officers has put forward some very good ideas on how policing can be improved in Western Australia. Those recommendations will need to be implemented in consultation with the new Commissioner of Police. We will be talking to the new Commissioner of Police about all these issues, including civilianisation, police numbers, resourcing, technology and communications issues in the Police Service, to make sure that we achieve all the results that the royal commission has indicated can be achieved if the framework for policing in the twenty-first century is right. We are very proud of our record. We have supported individual police officers through extra numbers and occupational safety. Ms S.E. Walker: They are nowhere to be seen. Have you been talking to them? Dr G.I. GALLOP: The Liberals were in power for eight years. Did they bring legislation into this Parliament to give police officers the ability to use the occupational health and safety legislation to protect their interests? No. Who did it? The Labor Government did it. Which Government gave police officers the right of appeal to the Western Australian Industrial Relations Commission? The Labor Government did it. As the Minister for State Development has said, the Labor Party is the political party that supports working people; it is the political party that advocates for the worker in this community. That is what we have done for the Police Service. The Liberal Party has just arrived; it has just discovered the Police Service. We came into government on a platform of objectives, which we have worked through comprehensively. We now have a new set of objectives that have been provided by the royal commission. Just as we systematically worked through our campaign platform objectives, we will systematically work through the recommendations of the royal commission.
(1)-(2) The hypocrisy of the Opposition on policing issues is extraordinary. When we came to government, a major project was being considered for communications technology and information technology in the Police Service that was capable of releasing a lot of police from paperwork so that they could do front-line activities. However, the former Government had not even funded that project in its budget. We had to find the money and put it into the Delta Communications and Information Technology and computer aided dispatch and communications services programs. That is what we have done. The advice we have had is that as a result of the significant investment we will make, it will be possible to get more front-line policing in Western Australia. The second thing that we have done is to fund extra police officers, who are needed in Western Australia. We have done that to the tune of 250 extra officers. We have currently achieved 175 extra officers, and by the end of the year we will have achieved the extra 250 officers. On top of that, the report of the Royal Commission Into Whether There Has Been Any Corrupt or Criminal Conduct by Western Australian Police Officers has put forward some very good ideas on how policing can be improved in Western Australia. Those recommendations will need to be implemented in consultation with the new Commissioner of Police. We will be talking to the new Commissioner of Police about all these issues, including civilianisation, police numbers, resourcing, technology and communications issues in the Police Service, to make sure that we achieve all the results that the royal commission has indicated can be achieved if the framework for policing in the twenty-first century is right. We are very proud of our record. We have supported individual police officers through extra numbers and occupational safety. Ms S.E. Walker: They are nowhere to be seen. Have you been talking to them? Dr G.I. GALLOP: The Liberals were in power for eight years. Did they bring legislation into this Parliament to give police officers the ability to use the occupational health and safety legislation to protect their interests? No. Who did it? The Labor Government did it. Which Government gave police officers the right of appeal to the Western Australian Industrial Relations Commission? The Labor Government did it. As the Minister for State Development has said, the Labor Party is the political party that supports working people; it is the political party that advocates for the worker in this community. That is what we have done for the Police Service. The Liberal Party has just arrived; it has just discovered the Police Service. We came into government on a platform of objectives, which we have worked through comprehensively. We now have a new set of objectives that have been provided by the royal commission. Just as we systematically worked through our campaign platform objectives, we will systematically work through the recommendations of the royal commission.
Dr G.I. GALLOP: The Liberals were in power for eight years. Did they bring legislation into this Parliament to give police officers the ability to use the occupational health and safety legislation to protect their interests? No. Who did it? The Labor Government did it. Which Government gave police officers the right of appeal to the Western Australian Industrial Relations Commission? The Labor Government did it. As the Minister for State Development has said, the Labor Party is the political party that supports working people; it is the political party that advocates for the worker in this community. That is what we have done for the Police Service. The Liberal Party has just arrived; it has just discovered the Police Service. We came into government on a platform of objectives, which we have worked through comprehensively. We now have a new set of objectives that have been provided by the royal commission. Just as we systematically worked through our campaign platform objectives, we will systematically work through the recommendations of the royal commission.
(1) Given that the Government has reduced civilian staff numbers in the Police Service at the same time as administrative workloads have dramatically increased, will the Premier admit that his Government has forced many sworn officers to now do paperwork rather than police work? (2) Given the Labor Party’s pre-election promise to ensure better front-line policing, why has the Government refused to provide any additional funding to allow Commissioner O’Callaghan to carry out his plan? Dr G.I. GALLOP replied: (1)-(2) The hypocrisy of the Opposition on policing issues is extraordinary. When we came to government, a major project was being considered for communications technology and information technology in the Police Service that was capable of releasing a lot of police from paperwork so that they could do front-line activities. However, the former Government had not even funded that project in its budget. We had to find the money and put it into the Delta Communications and Information Technology and computer aided dispatch and communications services programs. That is what we have done. The advice we have had is that as a result of the significant investment we will make, it will be possible to get more front-line policing in Western Australia. The second thing that we have done is to fund extra police officers, who are needed in Western Australia. We have done that to the tune of 250 extra officers. We have currently achieved 175 extra officers, and by the end of the year we will have achieved the extra 250 officers. On top of that, the report of the Royal Commission Into Whether There Has Been Any Corrupt or Criminal Conduct by Western Australian Police Officers has put forward some very good ideas on how policing can be improved in Western Australia. Those recommendations will need to be implemented in consultation with the new Commissioner of Police. We will be talking to the new Commissioner of Police about all these issues, including civilianisation, police numbers, resourcing, technology and communications issues in the Police Service, to make sure that we achieve all the results that the royal commission has indicated can be achieved if the framework for policing in the twenty-first century is right. We are very proud of our record. We have supported individual police officers through extra numbers and occupational safety. Ms S.E. Walker: They are nowhere to be seen. Have you been talking to them? Dr G.I. GALLOP: The Liberals were in power for eight years. Did they bring legislation into this Parliament to give police officers the ability to use the occupational health and safety legislation to protect their interests? No. Who did it? The Labor Government did it. Which Government gave police officers the right of appeal to the Western Australian Industrial Relations Commission? The Labor Government did it. As the Minister for State Development has said, the Labor Party is the political party that supports working people; it is the political party that advocates for the worker in this community. That is what we have done for the Police Service. The Liberal Party has just arrived; it has just discovered the Police Service. We came into government on a platform of objectives, which we have worked through comprehensively. We now have a new set of objectives that have been provided by the royal commission. Just as we systematically worked through our campaign platform objectives, we will systematically work through the recommendations of the royal commission.
(2) Given the Labor Party’s pre-election promise to ensure better front-line policing, why has the Government refused to provide any additional funding to allow Commissioner O’Callaghan to carry out his plan? Dr G.I. GALLOP replied: (1)-(2) The hypocrisy of the Opposition on policing issues is extraordinary. When we came to government, a major project was being considered for communications technology and information technology in the Police Service that was capable of releasing a lot of police from paperwork so that they could do front-line activities. However, the former Government had not even funded that project in its budget. We had to find the money and put it into the Delta Communications and Information Technology and computer aided dispatch and communications services programs. That is what we have done. The advice we have had is that as a result of the significant investment we will make, it will be possible to get more front-line policing in Western Australia. The second thing that we have done is to fund extra police officers, who are needed in Western Australia. We have done that to the tune of 250 extra officers. We have currently achieved 175 extra officers, and by the end of the year we will have achieved the extra 250 officers. On top of that, the report of the Royal Commission Into Whether There Has Been Any Corrupt or Criminal Conduct by Western Australian Police Officers has put forward some very good ideas on how policing can be improved in Western Australia. Those recommendations will need to be implemented in consultation with the new Commissioner of Police. We will be talking to the new Commissioner of Police about all these issues, including civilianisation, police numbers, resourcing, technology and communications issues in the Police Service, to make sure that we achieve all the results that the royal commission has indicated can be achieved if the framework for policing in the twenty-first century is right. We are very proud of our record. We have supported individual police officers through extra numbers and occupational safety. Ms S.E. Walker: They are nowhere to be seen. Have you been talking to them? Dr G.I. GALLOP: The Liberals were in power for eight years. Did they bring legislation into this Parliament to give police officers the ability to use the occupational health and safety legislation to protect their interests? No. Who did it? The Labor Government did it. Which Government gave police officers the right of appeal to the Western Australian Industrial Relations Commission? The Labor Government did it. As the Minister for State Development has said, the Labor Party is the political party that supports working people; it is the political party that advocates for the worker in this community. That is what we have done for the Police Service. The Liberal Party has just arrived; it has just discovered the Police Service. We came into government on a platform of objectives, which we have worked through comprehensively. We now have a new set of objectives that have been provided by the royal commission. Just as we systematically worked through our campaign platform objectives, we will systematically work through the recommendations of the royal commission.
Dr G.I. GALLOP replied: (1)-(2) The hypocrisy of the Opposition on policing issues is extraordinary. When we came to government, a major project was being considered for communications technology and information technology in the Police Service that was capable of releasing a lot of police from paperwork so that they could do front-line activities. However, the former Government had not even funded that project in its budget. We had to find the money and put it into the Delta Communications and Information Technology and computer aided dispatch and communications services programs. That is what we have done. The advice we have had is that as a result of the significant investment we will make, it will be possible to get more front-line policing in Western Australia. The second thing that we have done is to fund extra police officers, who are needed in Western Australia. We have done that to the tune of 250 extra officers. We have currently achieved 175 extra officers, and by the end of the year we will have achieved the extra 250 officers. On top of that, the report of the Royal Commission Into Whether There Has Been Any Corrupt or Criminal Conduct by Western Australian Police Officers has put forward some very good ideas on how policing can be improved in Western Australia. Those recommendations will need to be implemented in consultation with the new Commissioner of Police. We will be talking to the new Commissioner of Police about all these issues, including civilianisation, police numbers, resourcing, technology and communications issues in the Police Service, to make sure that we achieve all the results that the royal commission has indicated can be achieved if the framework for policing in the twenty-first century is right. We are very proud of our record. We have supported individual police officers through extra numbers and occupational safety. Ms S.E. Walker: They are nowhere to be seen. Have you been talking to them? Dr G.I. GALLOP: The Liberals were in power for eight years. Did they bring legislation into this Parliament to give police officers the ability to use the occupational health and safety legislation to protect their interests? No. Who did it? The Labor Government did it. Which Government gave police officers the right of appeal to the Western Australian Industrial Relations Commission? The Labor Government did it. As the Minister for State Development has said, the Labor Party is the political party that supports working people; it is the political party that advocates for the worker in this community. That is what we have done for the Police Service. The Liberal Party has just arrived; it has just discovered the Police Service. We came into government on a platform of objectives, which we have worked through comprehensively. We now have a new set of objectives that have been provided by the royal commission. Just as we systematically worked through our campaign platform objectives, we will systematically work through the recommendations of the royal commission.
(1)-(2) The hypocrisy of the Opposition on policing issues is extraordinary. When we came to government, a major project was being considered for communications technology and information technology in the Police Service that was capable of releasing a lot of police from paperwork so that they could do front-line activities. However, the former Government had not even funded that project in its budget. We had to find the money and put it into the Delta Communications and Information Technology and computer aided dispatch and communications services programs. That is what we have done. The advice we have had is that as a result of the significant investment we will make, it will be possible to get more front-line policing in Western Australia. The second thing that we have done is to fund extra police officers, who are needed in Western Australia. We have done that to the tune of 250 extra officers. We have currently achieved 175 extra officers, and by the end of the year we will have achieved the extra 250 officers. On top of that, the report of the Royal Commission Into Whether There Has Been Any Corrupt or Criminal Conduct by Western Australian Police Officers has put forward some very good ideas on how policing can be improved in Western Australia. Those recommendations will need to be implemented in consultation with the new Commissioner of Police. We will be talking to the new Commissioner of Police about all these issues, including civilianisation, police numbers, resourcing, technology and communications issues in the Police Service, to make sure that we achieve all the results that the royal commission has indicated can be achieved if the framework for policing in the twenty-first century is right. We are very proud of our record. We have supported individual police officers through extra numbers and occupational safety. Ms S.E. Walker: They are nowhere to be seen. Have you been talking to them? Dr G.I. GALLOP: The Liberals were in power for eight years. Did they bring legislation into this Parliament to give police officers the ability to use the occupational health and safety legislation to protect their interests? No. Who did it? The Labor Government did it. Which Government gave police officers the right of appeal to the Western Australian Industrial Relations Commission? The Labor Government did it. As the Minister for State Development has said, the Labor Party is the political party that supports working people; it is the political party that advocates for the worker in this community. That is what we have done for the Police Service. The Liberal Party has just arrived; it has just discovered the Police Service. We came into government on a platform of objectives, which we have worked through comprehensively. We now have a new set of objectives that have been provided by the royal commission. Just as we systematically worked through our campaign platform objectives, we will systematically work through the recommendations of the royal commission.
Dr G.I. GALLOP: The Liberals were in power for eight years. Did they bring legislation into this Parliament to give police officers the ability to use the occupational health and safety legislation to protect their interests? No. Who did it? The Labor Government did it. Which Government gave police officers the right of appeal to the Western Australian Industrial Relations Commission? The Labor Government did it. As the Minister for State Development has said, the Labor Party is the political party that supports working people; it is the political party that advocates for the worker in this community. That is what we have done for the Police Service. The Liberal Party has just arrived; it has just discovered the Police Service. We came into government on a platform of objectives, which we have worked through comprehensively. We now have a new set of objectives that have been provided by the royal commission. Just as we systematically worked through our campaign platform objectives, we will systematically work through the recommendations of the royal commission.
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