Stephen Jones (Throsby, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Regional Development and Infrastructure) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The previous Labor government, in its wisdom, established a proceeds of crime fund. The essence of the fund was to ensure that the ill-gotten gains from crime were recycled into community projects which could ensure we could divert people, particularly young people, from criminal activity and help to get their lives back on track. Against this background, it is of deep concern to members on this side of the House and constituents within my electorate that at Senate estimates this week the senator for Queensland and the minister responsible, the Attorney-General, advised that the government effectively intended to pocket the proceeds of crime. They are not proceeding with a range of announcements that were made by the previous government earlier this year including distribution from the $40 million National Crime Prevention Fund to projects in my electorate run by the PCYC.

Deputy Speaker Scott, you could not find a more apolitical organisation than the PCYC and you would not find an organisation within the community that had more respect than the PCYC. Therefore, it is baffling beyond belief that the government has decided not to proceed with a distribution from the proceeds of crime fund to fund a project in my electorate to get kids out of crime and have their lives put back on track.