❓ The Minister for Police addresses the WA Parliament on the government's strategy to combat methamphetamine use, detailing multi-agency collaboration, industry partnerships, and efforts to reduce both supply and demand. The strategy is in its final stages of development.
AnsweredQoN 295Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
POLICE —
METHAMPHETAMINES
295. Mr J. NORBERGER to the
Minister for Police.
Can the minister update the house on what the government is
doing to address the methamphetamine issue?
METHAMPHETAMINES
295. Mr J. NORBERGER to the
Minister for Police.
Can the minister update the house on what the government is
doing to address the methamphetamine issue?
AnswerView source ↗
Thank you, Mr Speaker —
Several opposition members interjected.
Mrs L.M. HARVEY :
The response is interesting to what is a very serious issue in the community. I
thank the member for Joondalup for his interest in this matter. He takes a
considered approach to these matters, as indeed the government does.
Quite some time ago, I raised this issue of methamphetamine
use in the Western Australian community with the WA Commissioner of Police. I
asked the police commissioner to work up a strategy to address the supply end
of the methamphetamine issue in our community. I am happy to say that we are in
the final stages of the development of that strategy. A very positive approach
has been taken by Western Australia Police. It is indeed a multiagency approach
that has involved other commonwealth jurisdictions. Western Australia Police
report to me that it has the best ever working relationship it has had with our
federal counterparts. That is being driven largely in part by the federal
Minister for Justice, Hon Michael Keenan. We have arrived at a coordinated
approach involving the federal agencies of Customs, the Australian Crime
Commission, the Australian Federal Police and WA Police working together side
by side to look at ways to address hardening up our borders, looking at our
distribution channels both within Western Australia and across Australia, and
also of course at local manufacturing.
We are also working with industry in this space. I recently
visited Fortescue Metals Group's Christmas Creek site and spoke with
its head of security. FMG has very much taken an industry lead role in managing
the flow of methamphetamine throughout the supply chains in the Pilbara, and in
and out of its worksites. It has had some very successful operations. FMG works
in a very coordinated fashion with our regional policing teams to make sure it
can keep its worksites safe and stop the flow of methamphetamine into its
worksites.
On a local level, our local policing
teams will continue to be very effective in that space at looking at local
manufacturing. Members might be interested to know that most of the clandestine
laboratories found in metropolitan Perth, and indeed across the state, are
small-scale operations mainly based around addicts supplying their own needs.
In 2010–11, 171 clan labs were reported and found in Western Australia.
Last year that number was down to 97 clan labs. Indeed, the pressure that WA
Police have had on local manufacturing is starting to take effect, and we will
continue to keep that pressure on local manufacturers.
My esteemed colleague in the other
place, Hon Helen Morton, is also working on the demand end of the
methamphetamine strategy and on ways we can address the drivers of
methamphetamine use in the community. Members in the house yesterday would have
heard the Premier talking about the outcomes of his recent Council of Australian
Governments meeting, which has agreed to a coordinated approach to tackling the
methamphetamine issue across Australia. It is important that everyone in this
place understands that we are not going to solve a methamphetamine —
Several members interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Girrawheen, I think that I have been very lenient; I
call you to order for the third time. Member for Forrestfield, I call you to
order for the first time.
Mrs
L.M. HARVEY : It is important that members understand the complexity of the
methamphetamine issue across Australia. We will come up with different
solutions and a different strategy to address those people in regional and
remote communities. I know that will be of concern to the member for Kimberley.
We will also have strategies across the metropolitan area and broader
strategies across Australia, and I intend to update the house when that
strategy is finalised. It is important for members to be aware that this is a
complex problem; it needs a coordinated strategic approach, and it will not be
resolved by some fizzle or thought bubble such as that suggested by the Leader
of the Opposition yesterday.
Several opposition members interjected.
Mrs L.M. HARVEY :
The response is interesting to what is a very serious issue in the community. I
thank the member for Joondalup for his interest in this matter. He takes a
considered approach to these matters, as indeed the government does.
Quite some time ago, I raised this issue of methamphetamine
use in the Western Australian community with the WA Commissioner of Police. I
asked the police commissioner to work up a strategy to address the supply end
of the methamphetamine issue in our community. I am happy to say that we are in
the final stages of the development of that strategy. A very positive approach
has been taken by Western Australia Police. It is indeed a multiagency approach
that has involved other commonwealth jurisdictions. Western Australia Police
report to me that it has the best ever working relationship it has had with our
federal counterparts. That is being driven largely in part by the federal
Minister for Justice, Hon Michael Keenan. We have arrived at a coordinated
approach involving the federal agencies of Customs, the Australian Crime
Commission, the Australian Federal Police and WA Police working together side
by side to look at ways to address hardening up our borders, looking at our
distribution channels both within Western Australia and across Australia, and
also of course at local manufacturing.
We are also working with industry in this space. I recently
visited Fortescue Metals Group's Christmas Creek site and spoke with
its head of security. FMG has very much taken an industry lead role in managing
the flow of methamphetamine throughout the supply chains in the Pilbara, and in
and out of its worksites. It has had some very successful operations. FMG works
in a very coordinated fashion with our regional policing teams to make sure it
can keep its worksites safe and stop the flow of methamphetamine into its
worksites.
On a local level, our local policing
teams will continue to be very effective in that space at looking at local
manufacturing. Members might be interested to know that most of the clandestine
laboratories found in metropolitan Perth, and indeed across the state, are
small-scale operations mainly based around addicts supplying their own needs.
In 2010–11, 171 clan labs were reported and found in Western Australia.
Last year that number was down to 97 clan labs. Indeed, the pressure that WA
Police have had on local manufacturing is starting to take effect, and we will
continue to keep that pressure on local manufacturers.
My esteemed colleague in the other
place, Hon Helen Morton, is also working on the demand end of the
methamphetamine strategy and on ways we can address the drivers of
methamphetamine use in the community. Members in the house yesterday would have
heard the Premier talking about the outcomes of his recent Council of Australian
Governments meeting, which has agreed to a coordinated approach to tackling the
methamphetamine issue across Australia. It is important that everyone in this
place understands that we are not going to solve a methamphetamine —
Several members interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Girrawheen, I think that I have been very lenient; I
call you to order for the third time. Member for Forrestfield, I call you to
order for the first time.
Mrs
L.M. HARVEY : It is important that members understand the complexity of the
methamphetamine issue across Australia. We will come up with different
solutions and a different strategy to address those people in regional and
remote communities. I know that will be of concern to the member for Kimberley.
We will also have strategies across the metropolitan area and broader
strategies across Australia, and I intend to update the house when that
strategy is finalised. It is important for members to be aware that this is a
complex problem; it needs a coordinated strategic approach, and it will not be
resolved by some fizzle or thought bubble such as that suggested by the Leader
of the Opposition yesterday.
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