Russell Matheson (Macarthur, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to support the member for Fowler's motion, along with the members for Moreton and Ryan. With National Police Remembrance Day fast approaching on 29 September, I am thankful for this opportunity to acknowledge the important role police officers play in our community and the significant sacrifices they make regularly in order to keep us safe. National Police Remembrance Day is a day for all Australians to pause and honour the bravery of officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty, as well as those who have passed away through illness and other circumstances.

Each year, I am compelled to raise awareness of National Police Remembrance Day because I know from firsthand experience how challenging a job it is, both for the officers and their families. For 25 years I proudly served my community as a police officer in the New South Wales Police Force, so I understand the physical and emotional demands that are part and parcel of doing the job. I understand what it is like to work long and antisocial hours away from one's family in difficult and often dangerous circumstances. I understand the strain this places on our partners and loved ones, who are forced to supress the niggling fear that one day someone may turn up at the front door and, from that point onwards, they will be left to raise their children alone.

Every loss of a police officer is a solemn and jarring reminder of the dangers they face in the line of duty and the immense expectations that we, as a community, place on them to protect us. On Saturday, thousands of people from right across Australia took part in the Wall to Wall Ride for Remembrance: an annual tribute that honours the service and sacrifices of the many law enforcement officers killed while on duty. All funds raised during the Wall to Wall ride by the New South Wales contingent goes to New South Wales Police Legacy, which provides care and support to more than 20,000 serving and retired police officers and their families during times of tragedy and need. The charity ride is a sight to behold, and this year was no different with the banks of the Hume Highway lined with saluting officers, well-wishers and historic police cars, as more than 2,000 riders made the symbolic journey from Sydney to the National Police Memorial in Canberra on what was a beautiful spring day.

In a final gesture of solidarity and remembrance, a ceremony was held at the National Police Memorial in honour of the police who have made the ultimate sacrifice, with the names represented on the touchstones of the memorial wall. During the ceremony, batons were presented by each of the nine policing jurisdictions and the names of the inner scrolls were read out to honour those who lost their lives in the past year. Thankfully, the New South Wales scroll was blank this year. Two hundred and fifty two officers have lost their lives in the service of their community throughout the 153-year history of the New South Wales Police Force.

On previous occasions, I have spoken about two courageous police officers killed in the line of duty: namely, Detective Senior Constable Damian Leeding, who was killed during an armed robbery on the Gold Coast in 2011, and Senior Constable Jim Affleck, a highway patrolman from my electorate of Macarthur, who was run down during a police pursuit along the F5 in 2001. More recently, on 6 December 2012, Detective Inspector Bryson Charles Anderson attended a neighbours' dispute in Oakville in New South Wales where a number of arrows had been fired in the vicinity of people working on a neighbouring property. While Detective Inspector Anderson was questioning the offender, who was at the back door of the residence, the offender produced a knife and stabbed him in the face and chest. Despite his wounds, Detective Inspector Anderson assisted his colleagues to subdue the offender and a female accomplice, before he collapsed and later died from his injuries. Detective Inspector Anderson fought to protect his comrades while mortally wounded, without thought for himself and his own injuries, and his remarkable bravery should never be forgotten.

Throughout my career in the New South Wales Police Force and in my subsequent role as a member of this parliament, I have been fortunate enough to have met and made countless friends in the police force. The year 2015 marks a significant milestone for the New South Wales Police, which celebrates the evolution of the role of women in policing in New South Wales since the introduction of the first female special constables, Lillian Armfield and Maude Rhodes, in 1915. Today, New South Wales boasts 4,542 female sworn officers and 2,581 female unsworn officers.

To commemorate this remarkable achievement and all that women have achieved in policing over the last century, officers from across the 79 local area commands in New South Wales took part in the inaugural New South Wales Women in Policing Baton Relay which was launched on the steps of the Opera House on 8 March. I am delighted to say that both the Camden and Campbelltown LACs in Macarthur took part in the relay, which included a number of celebratory events and presentations along the way.

On behalf of the people of Macarthur, I would like to thank everyone involved in this landmark event and, more importantly, the remarkable policemen and women past and present who have served communities throughout Australia with such valour and distinction. You deserve the highest respect for what you do and we are all greatly thankful.

Debate adjourned.

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