Andrew Laming (Bowman, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Finance. Can the minister update the House on how ice is impacting metropolitan and regional communities across Australia? What steps is the government taking to tackle this scourge?

Honourable Members:

Honourable members interjecting—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Bowman might like to rephrase his question.

Andrew Laming (Bowman, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My apologies: it was for the Minister for Justice.

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There is no need to restate the question, unless the Minister for Justice needs to hear it again.

Michael Keenan (Stirling, Liberal Party, Minister for Justice) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Bowman for that question and the interest that he takes in these issues. As every member of this House would be aware, Australia has a significant problem with crystal methamphetamine—otherwise known as ice. Over the past few years in particular, we have seen the creep of this insidious drug move across the whole country.

I think all members, going about the course of their duties, would have been made aware from service providers on the front line—people who work in our hospitals, policemen—about the sorts of issues that the use of this drug presents for them such as the irrational and incredibly violent behaviour. The government has been very concerned to show national leadership and to do all that we can to address the creep of this terrible drug. That is why we asked the former Chief Commissioner of police in Victoria, Ken Lay, to join with two health professionals to provide the government with the best possible advice about what we can do to show that national leadership.

They have provided the government with advice after moving about the country and talking to regional communities in particular because, sadly, we know that regional communities can be particularly impacted by this drug. In December last year, the government responded by investing over $300 million extra in drug and alcohol rehabilitation.

We know that we need to address both the supply side and the demand side of this drug. On the demand side, we have been doing everything we can to make sure that people are educated about its effects and if you do need treatment then that treatment is available to you. On the supply side, our law enforcement agencies have been doing a magnificent job finding the people who peddle in this misery and doing all that they can to lock them up and destroy their distribution networks.

This is a job that is beyond just our law enforcement community. I would urge all in the community to be a part of it and that is why we invested a million dollars of proceeds of crime in the Dob in a Dealer campaign that is being rolled out by Crime Stoppers that will be starting in Queensland this very week. This program encourages everybody who has information that might help the police do their job to contact Crime Stoppers and provide those snippets of information that can then be used to create a larger intelligence picture. That information is very important for our policing agencies and will make sure that they can continue to do the job of keeping this drug off our streets.

Already we have seen that the weight of ice seized at our borders has grown 60 times in the past four years. That is a direct result of the additional $88 million we made available for Customs to seize contraband that crosses our borders when we came to office. Arrests nationally have increased by 88 per cent since 2010. We have continued to enhance our international cooperation, including sending Australian Crime Commission officers and Australian Federal Police officers up to China to work directly with their counterparts.

Crystal methamphetamine, or ice, is a dreadful drug and this government are doing all that we can to show national leadership to get it off our streets.

Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I ask that further questions be placed on the Notice Paper.