Question regarding staff reductions related to the Blue Iris CCTV system implementation after the Office of Crime Prevention was moved into WA Police. The Minister denies a 'slashing' of staff, citing a relocation and a minor FTE reduction being addressed, and accuses the opposition of not taking crime seriously.

AnsweredQoN 701Legislative Assembly
Asked
19 October 2011
Portfolio
Police

QuestionView source ↗

CLOSED-CIRCUIT TELEVISION — AUDITOR GENERAL’S REPORT
I ask a supplementary question. Even though the minister said in his press release in April 2009 that Blue Iris would be a valuable tool to police operations and crime prevention across the state, why did he nevertheless preside over a slashing of staff enabled to implement this system? Mr R.F. JOHNSON

AnswerView source ↗

There was not a slashing of staff; there was a move of staff from one area to another when the office of crime prevention was moved from being a separate unit to being part of WA Police. Certain staff did not want to go over there. I have been told that there has been a reduction of two FTEs. That is being addressed. Some of the member’s colleagues see this as a matter of mirth. There is a tremendous CCTV system in Fremantle. They have seen people who have been behaving very suspiciously. If they believed that a crime was about to be committed, they contacted the police, who have gone there and prevented a crime from being committed or have caught them while the crime is being committed. That is what I am saying. The opposition thinks it is a joke. It obviously finds crime a joke. We on this side of the house do not; we take it very, very seriously. I can assure the member that Blue Iris, the system that we have in place, will get better and better over the coming years.
Mr R.F. JOHNSON replied: There was not a slashing of staff; there was a move of staff from one area to another when the office of crime prevention was moved from being a separate unit to being part of WA Police. Certain staff did not want to go over there. I have been told that there has been a reduction of two FTEs. That is being addressed. Some of the member’s colleagues see this as a matter of mirth. There is a tremendous CCTV system in Fremantle. They have seen people who have been behaving very suspiciously. If they believed that a crime was about to be committed, they contacted the police, who have gone there and prevented a crime from being committed or have caught them while the crime is being committed. That is what I am saying. The opposition thinks it is a joke. It obviously finds crime a joke. We on this side of the house do not; we take it very, very seriously. I can assure the member that Blue Iris, the system that we have in place, will get better and better over the coming years.
There was not a slashing of staff; there was a move of staff from one area to another when the office of crime prevention was moved from being a separate unit to being part of WA Police. Certain staff did not want to go over there. I have been told that there has been a reduction of two FTEs. That is being addressed. Some of the member’s colleagues see this as a matter of mirth. There is a tremendous CCTV system in Fremantle. They have seen people who have been behaving very suspiciously. If they believed that a crime was about to be committed, they contacted the police, who have gone there and prevented a crime from being committed or have caught them while the crime is being committed. That is what I am saying. The opposition thinks it is a joke. It obviously finds crime a joke. We on this side of the house do not; we take it very, very seriously. I can assure the member that Blue Iris, the system that we have in place, will get better and better over the coming years.

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