Jason Wood (La Trobe, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I congratulate the member for Fowler on all he has done for police men and women right across this country. We have worked previously together on committee and he has always put the thoughts and the views of police members first. That is why I am standing here to support this motion. The motion 'notes that National Police Remembrance Day is observed on 29 September' and 'acknowledges the significant role police make to our local communities and the high degree of risk and personal sacrifice that comes with their duty'. In modern times, sadly that has only gotten worse. The motion 'commends the good work of Police Legacy, who look after the loved ones of police who have died as a result of their duties', and I have attended a number of those events.

I rise to speak on the importance of National Police Remembrance Day. The previous speakers to this motion have touched on this, but I would like to reiterate that our state, territory and Australian police members have, and always will have, the utmost respect of members of parliament for the work they do. The work of police is different to most other jobs. You never know what is going to happen next on your patrol. As a former police officer for 18 years, I know that you could wake up in the morning, go to work and by the end of the day have seen the worst side of life. A lot of members do suffer stress, especially those who have seen horrific incidents. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the police associations and unions in Australia were in the vanguard of moves to establish a memorial to all police officers killed on duty. This process was a long and arduous one, with many discussions between different levels and sections of government and all sorts of stakeholders. Questions such as what would constitute 'killed in the line of duty', whether all emergency services workers would be honoured at the same memorial and who would pay for the memorial were all bounced back and forth for many years. Full police association and union involvement was critical to the success, along with the unanimous support of various, state, territory and Commonwealth governments and police services.

The National Police Memorial commemorates those who have been killed on duty or have died as a result of their duties and recognises the police contribution to the Australian community. The memorial should capture a range of policing elements, including courage, duty and integrity; the perpetual need to serve the community; the unpredictable nature of policing; the strength and common purpose of police; and local, national and international aspects. The memorial itself was opened on 29 September 2006, and I am very proud to say I was there on the day.

I think it is important, though, at this point to highlight the parameters around who is included in the memorial, particularly what it means to say that someone died as a result of their duties. The determination as it currently stands states that this includes:

… a police officer has died as a direct and conclusive link to a personal injury causing or substantially contributing to the death. An illness or disease may be classed as an injury if arising from an external physical cause or contracted in the course of duty.

Obviously there are some holes in this ruling in the sense that mental health issues are often difficult to see in an outwardly manifested way. You cannot see the mental effect of working in the police force in the same way you can see a bullet wound or a broken arm.

I would like to briefly touch on a police member who sadly and tragically took his life. I will refer to him as Paul. I knew him personally. He had an outstanding career, including receiving the Victorian Police Star, National Medal; National Police Service Medal, Second Class; National Medal, First Class; and National Police Service Medal, Third Class. He had an incredible career with Victoria Police, including duxing as a recruit. He was also one of my detective training school instructors. I was very sad to hear—my chief of staff, Gary, also worked with this gentleman. We have been in contact with his sister. We believe it is high time that when members have tragically taken their lives they are included in the memorial, because they also have served the community for year after year. Thank you.

See this speech in context