Brendan O'Connor (Gorton, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Home Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for his question. I agree with him that closed-circuit television can be very important physical security infrastructure for local communities. That is why the government has been dedicating its resources to provide support in communities in Western Australia and other states around the country. Indeed, I have spent some time in the electorate of the shadow minister, Mr Keenan, talking to the City of Stirling, where there has been some really good work done by that municipality and work that we have done with it. I also commend the state police of Western Australia.

I see this as a three-way partnership: the federal government providing the resources based on some very strict requirements; getting local governments involved and engaged, because they are closest to the people and deal with the concerns of the community, particularly in relation to public spaces; and seeking the advice of state law enforcement agencies, who understand the crime hotspots, including some of those areas that the member has referred to.

I cannot give an answer now as to whether we can deliver five CCTV cameras to those areas, but I can inform the member that the government takes seriously crime, preventing the likelihood of crime and preventing the fear of crime, which is as much an issue about quality of life as anything else. If members of our communities cannot feel safe in their own streets, in their own public spaces or in their own homes, of course that corrodes their quality of life. For that reason we do everything we can to ensure that we provide support.

The Safer Suburbs Plan is funded under section 298 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002. Since December 2007, I can advise the member, over $43 million has been provided—$23 million to support community based crime prevention and drug treatment and diversion programs, and $20 million to government agencies for law enforcement projects. We have a combination of the Proceeds of Crime Act and the Safer Suburbs Plan. They are not huge resources, but the funding has to be based on the merits. I would happily take any submission made by community members from the honourable member's electorate, whether it came from local government or other organisations about the merits of his request. I can assure him that we determine these matters based on the merits of the submissions and the effectiveness of the delivery of the important physical infrastructure that we can install. I should add that it is not just about the installation of physical security infrastructure; it is also about trying to prevent crime. That is why we also dedicate resources to diversionary programs—for example, to stop young people from engaging in antisocial behaviour and to prevent people from falling into improper conduct or perhaps criminal behaviour, which causes problems in the community.

I take the member's question seriously. I am happy to consider any submissions he makes. I should add that it is a dedicated and limited resource, but we always take those types of requests seriously and I understand he has an interest in this matters. As I say, I have dealt with other members in Western Australia and other parts of the country around these initiatives. They are very popular. People see that the federal government is working hand in hand with local government and state police. We will continue to do that because we believe we have a role to play in providing resources to other governments in order to prevent crime and, as I said earlier, prevent the fear of crime.

See this speech in context