❓ The Minister for Police provides an update on police recruitment in WA, reporting progress towards election commitments and highlighting government initiatives to support and protect police officers.
AnsweredQoN 347Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
POLICE — RECRUITMENT
347. MR N.W. MORTON to the
Minister for Police:
Can the minister update the house on police recruitment in
Western Australia?
347. MR N.W. MORTON to the
Minister for Police:
Can the minister update the house on police recruitment in
Western Australia?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for the question and for his continued and
sustained interest in law and order issues in this state, particularly in his
electorate.
I am very pleased to report today that WA Police has now
completed the allocation of recruitment for 2012–13 by recruiting an
additional 70 police officers. This puts us on track to achieve the promised
2008 election commitment of an additional 500 police officers. That was a
five-year program that was initially funded in 2009–10, and we are now
well on target to achieve the remaining 100 police officers as part of that
recruitment drive by the end of June 2014. The member has probably noticed WA
Police's aggressive recruitment campaign that is currently in train. We
have received quite a lot of interest as a result of that recruitment campaign
and we believe that we will be able to deliver, on time and on target, the
additional 550 police and police auxiliary officers that we committed to in the
2013 election campaign.
I would like to put it on the record
that this is a very good time for people to put the word out about the
advantages of being a police officer here in Western Australia. On 1 July, our
police officers will receive a 4.5 per cent pay rise as a result of the last
enterprise bargaining agreement negotiations.
Several members interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Armadale, I call you to order for the second time.
Mrs L.M. HARVEY :
The state Liberal–National government has also passed laws that will
ensure that those who assault and harm police officers will go to jail. As a
result of that mandatory sentencing legislation, we have seen a 40 per cent
reduction in assaults on police officers in Western Australia. We also
introduced legislation to cover medical expenses for the work-related injuries
of police officers who retire from WA Police, and we have recently made
amendments to our legislation to ensure that those people who flee from police
while police are engaged in emergency driving will suffer severe penalties. We
have given greater protections to our police officers who engage in these
sometimes very dangerous activities.
We have also given greater protection to police officers who
are engaged in undercover, covert investigations in this state; we passed
legislation at the end of last year that will ensure that our officers who
undertake covert work will have their identities protected and will have
afforded to them all the protections that they need and, indeed, deserve, as
they undertake the very important work of crushing drug syndicates and crime
gangs.
To conclude, I am very, very pleased to update the house
that, as a result of the recruitment of the additional 70 police officers, we
are now on track and on target to achieve the portion of that 500 growth
program that we said we would achieve for 2012–13. We have 100 left to
go from that commitment, and we are well on track, with the interest out of our
recruitment drive, to ensure that we deliver 1 050 additional police and police
auxiliary officers over the first eight years of our government.
sustained interest in law and order issues in this state, particularly in his
electorate.
I am very pleased to report today that WA Police has now
completed the allocation of recruitment for 2012–13 by recruiting an
additional 70 police officers. This puts us on track to achieve the promised
2008 election commitment of an additional 500 police officers. That was a
five-year program that was initially funded in 2009–10, and we are now
well on target to achieve the remaining 100 police officers as part of that
recruitment drive by the end of June 2014. The member has probably noticed WA
Police's aggressive recruitment campaign that is currently in train. We
have received quite a lot of interest as a result of that recruitment campaign
and we believe that we will be able to deliver, on time and on target, the
additional 550 police and police auxiliary officers that we committed to in the
2013 election campaign.
I would like to put it on the record
that this is a very good time for people to put the word out about the
advantages of being a police officer here in Western Australia. On 1 July, our
police officers will receive a 4.5 per cent pay rise as a result of the last
enterprise bargaining agreement negotiations.
Several members interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Armadale, I call you to order for the second time.
Mrs L.M. HARVEY :
The state Liberal–National government has also passed laws that will
ensure that those who assault and harm police officers will go to jail. As a
result of that mandatory sentencing legislation, we have seen a 40 per cent
reduction in assaults on police officers in Western Australia. We also
introduced legislation to cover medical expenses for the work-related injuries
of police officers who retire from WA Police, and we have recently made
amendments to our legislation to ensure that those people who flee from police
while police are engaged in emergency driving will suffer severe penalties. We
have given greater protections to our police officers who engage in these
sometimes very dangerous activities.
We have also given greater protection to police officers who
are engaged in undercover, covert investigations in this state; we passed
legislation at the end of last year that will ensure that our officers who
undertake covert work will have their identities protected and will have
afforded to them all the protections that they need and, indeed, deserve, as
they undertake the very important work of crushing drug syndicates and crime
gangs.
To conclude, I am very, very pleased to update the house
that, as a result of the recruitment of the additional 70 police officers, we
are now on track and on target to achieve the portion of that 500 growth
program that we said we would achieve for 2012–13. We have 100 left to
go from that commitment, and we are well on track, with the interest out of our
recruitment drive, to ensure that we deliver 1 050 additional police and police
auxiliary officers over the first eight years of our government.
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