Chris Hayes (Fowler, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) notes that National Police Remembrance Day is observed on 29 September;

(2) acknowledges the significant role police make to our local communities and the high degree of risk and personal sacrifice that comes with their duty;

(3) honours the courage and commitment of the men and women who serve in our state and territory police forces together with the Australian Federal Police, and who dedicate their careers to protecting and serving our community;

(4) remembers the ultimate sacrifice that has been made by police officers who have been killed in the course of their duty, and honours their lives;

(5) 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

(6) reaffirms our support for the nation's 56,000 police officers, and honours their efforts to make a difference, defend our way of life and safeguard the peace and security of our communities.

Each year, 29 September is a significant date for Australian police. It is the feast day of Saint Michael, the Patron Saint of Police Peacekeepers, and the day nationally adopted to commemorate police remembrance. Next year will mark the 30th year of National Police Remembrance Day services being commemorated.

This year it takes on particular significance for police, as they celebrate the 10th anniversary of the National Police Memorial here in Canberra. There was a large turnout at Kings Park and the service was preceded by police from every jurisdiction marching from the Australian Federal Police headquarters across Kings Avenue Bridge to the memorial in Kings Park. The ceremony at the National Police Memorial was attended by the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition, Mr Bill Shorten, and Justice Minister Michael Keenan.

There were seven new names added to the memorial this year, five of them of an historical nature. That brings the total number of names on the wall to 764—from the first death that was recorded, being Constable Joseph Luker in Sydney Town on 26 August 1803, to the most recent death of Sergeant Geoffrey Richardson who died in a police motor vehicle accident while en route to assist colleagues in a police pursuit on 5 March 2016 at Allandale in the Hunter Valley, New South Wales.

For the first time, the memorial now holds the name of a non-service, unsworn employee of New South Wales Police, Curtis Cheng, who was killed on 2 October 2015 in a terrorist incident outside the New South Wales Police headquarters in Parramatta.

Another very important event occurred at the National Police Memorial on 17 September this year. This was the seventh Wall to Wall Ride for Remembrance. I was pleased to ride from Sydney with New South Wales Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione, together with Western Australian Police Commissioner Karl O'Callaghan, Queensland Police Commissioner Ian Stewart and Northern Territory Police Commissioner Reece Kershaw. This was my seventh ride in this event.

This year saw 2,080 police officers and their supporters riding motorcycles en masse from EPIC on the northern entrance to Canberra, down to Northbourne Avenue, across Commonwealth Avenue Bridge, up to Parliament House, down Kings Avenue and, finally, finishing at the National Police Memorial.

In the first six years of this ride, the PFA, who organise the event each year, has donated $50,000 to Police Legacy, an organisation that does such a wonderful job in looking after the dependants of deceased police officers across the country.

In a very moving speech at the memorial by PFA president Mark Carroll, he summed up the feeling when he said:

Australian police have been sacrificing their lives in the line of duty for more than two centuries. And we've all seen and felt for ourselves just how heartrending those losses are, to shattered families, to grieving friends, to stunned colleagues, even sometimes to strangers.

Of course, when violence and hate and cowardice are behind the loss of our mates, the grief is made all the worse.

Acts of barbarism add so many layers of pain and anger and infuriation.

Ultimately, it becomes such an important task to keep every fallen member in the consciousness and the hearts of the living.

I know that through the wall-to-wall ride for remembrance you as a collective are determined to do that.

The Western Australian police commissioner, Karl O'Callaghan, who also took part in the ride, said this at the service:

This place has become the spiritual home of police in Australia. It is here that we are all reminded of the magnitude and gravity of what we are called to do on a day to day basis. This place means so much to those who have been called to the vocation of policing. We are here because we know it could happen to any one of us.

I say of all those police who have given their lives in the course of their duties: may they rest in peace. We are forever grateful for their service.

Maria Vamvakinou (Calwell, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is the motion seconded?

Tim Watts (Gellibrand, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second the motion.

Jason Wood (La Trobe, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to 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.

Lisa Chesters (Bendigo, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Firstly I would like to acknowledge and congratulate the member for bringing forward this very important motion. These days we do have lots of remembrance days throughout our calendar, and it is one of the roles of being an elected representative to attend these services on behalf of our community. Police National Remembrance Day is important. In reflecting on the remarks made by the previous speaker, I too wish to highlight in this speech mental health and how mental health should be at front of mind for all police officers.

I acknowledge the work that our police services are doing around the country—and the AFP—to start having the conversation. The conversation around mental health and suicide is difficult in any workplace, but even more so in the police. and I will outline that in a few moments.

At the Bendigo service we actually had the former superintendent for Bendigo, Peter Bull, as the guest speaker. He had recently completed some work on this issue for the Victoria Police. He spoke about what is happening and what his study actually found. In his speech he highlighted to the room and to the people who had attended the service that police officers were four times more likely to die as a result of their own actions than all other causes combined.

It is an alarming and heartbreaking statistic and I congratulate Peter Bull for talking about this tough topic. As he said, today of all days we must remember these individuals; we must do better as a community and as a force to support all men and women of Victoria Police—in fact all police forces around the country—to make sure that we have proper debriefing, to make sure that we are reaching out and checking in on each other, so that that statistic can come down.

In Victoria we acknowledged 22 serving Victorian police officers who had lost their lives in the last 12 months. Whilst none of those were from my electorate, there were many families who attended on that day who were still mourning the loss of their loved ones. This day allows families who have lost loved ones who have served as police a chance to respect and to remember. I spoke to one mother who still speaks about the pain of losing her son. She speaks about how much he loved his job. He did it to serve his community. Days like today allowed her to talk about his role and about his work and helped her with the grieving process.

When community and social cohesion start to fracture, it is our emergency services who are at the front line. Whether they be police, whether they be ambulance officers, whether they be our firefighters or our social workers, they are at the front line. And we know that we are experiencing increased rates of social community and family cohesion breakdown which is resulting in increased crime, and our police are at the front line of that.

In my part of the world, in Bendigo in central Victoria, we are seeing spikes of family violence. It is our police that are at the front line of that. We are seeing an increase in aggravated assault and burglary. Our police and emergency services are at the front line of that. So on remembrance day, whilst we stop to remember respect and reflect on those who have lost their lives, we also took a moment to stop and reflect on those who are still working and still serving and the challenges that they face today and every day.

It is important that we reach out and ensure that men and women working in the police force know that they do have services and support to turn to. It is important that this place acknowledge their hard work and the increasing dangers that they place themselves in. There is more that we can do in this place, not just to remember, through motions like this, but to ensure that they are adequately funded and resourced, that they have the programs when people reach out for support. I support the motion and commend it to the House.

Chris Crewther (Dunkley, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Today I rise and acknowledge my support of the Hayes motion on National Police Remembrance Day. It is an opportunity to honour the memory of those who have given their lives in the service of our community.

National Police Remembrance Day service is significant and it is a significant date on the policing calendar. This year it is marked on 29 September. At this year's service I was honoured to be invited to participate in a Blue Ribbon Day memorial service at the Frankston RSL in Dunkley and to lay a wreath in honour of those who had served and lost their lives in the line of duty in our local community. I was joined by my state and local government counterparts, Acting Superintendent Simon Humphrey, members of the local police force, family and friends of Victorian police officers and members of the community.

Importantly, a Victorian Police Star medal was posthumously awarded to First Constable Edward Keith Simmons, who died while serving on duty on Olivers Hill in Frankston on 24 September 1957, at the age of just 33. First Constable Simmons had two children: Cathy, aged four years, who has now passed away, and Andrew Keith Simmons, who was two years old at the date of his father's death. Andrew was there to accept the award on his father's behalf at the event, and it was a very moving ceremony.

This memorial service has offered the opportunity to provide solemn reflection and a space for serving and retired police officers and their families, along with members of the Dunkley community, to honour the memory of police officers who gave their lives in the service of our community. Personally I have two cousins—my cousin Jason McKenzie and his wife Melissa—who serve as police officers in Melbourne. Melissa is about to have their third child.

So it is particularly important that members of the police force are respected and that we remember the significant service of those who lost their lives. We have to keep working to ensure that police officers are protected and respected in the line of duty. The total number of police officers now listed in the national police memorial is now 764, following the addition of seven new names to the wall.

In Dunkley, for example, there are in excess of 100 police members as well as detectives and support staff who are working in Dunkley. Recently raised with me by Counsellor Darryl Taylor, formerly the Mayor of the City of Frankston and now standing again as a councillor in the upcoming elections—was the idea of installing a formal police memorial at the new Frankston war memorial site in Frankston. Darryl was instrumental in securing these funds to begin with for the new memorial. I thought this was a terrific idea that should be supported. It is an idea that would honour those police officers who have served and who may have lost their lives in duty in Dunkley, but also it respects those across Victoria who have gone through a similar circumstance.

I would also like to thank and honour the men and women of the police force in Dunkley who put their lives on the line all the time. They do a significant job. I have experienced the work of the police force and been to a number of events in Dunkley to hear from members of the police force about what they have done and what they continue to do in protecting our community. Frankston in Dunkley, like many other communities across Victoria, is not precluded from having issues around crime and violence, particularly domestic violence. Being the father of a one-year-old daughter and the husband of my wife for over seven years, I believe it is quite significant that we need to support police officers in their work in protecting, in particular, women, children, the elderly and others from the impacts of domestic violence. National Police Remembrance Day goes to the heart of what the police force do, and we really need to make sure that we support them in Dunkley and beyond.

Justine Elliot (Richmond, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am very pleased to be speaking on this important motion about National Police Remembrance Day. I commend the member for Fowler for moving the motion and note the contributions by other members, all of whom have shown very strong support for our police services and for recognising National Police Remembrance Day, which falls on 29 September. It is very significant that our federal parliament regularly acknowledges the service and sacrifice of our police officers throughout the nation.

I am particularly pleased to speak on this motion for a number of reasons. Firstly, as a former police officer myself I always want to take the opportunity to commend the work of our police services right across the country. My husband is also a former police officer, so we know firsthand the challenges that our frontline police officers face. I also want to take this opportunity to thank the local police in my electorate of Richmond. This is the Tweed-Byron Local Area Command. They do an incredible job, often under very difficult circumstances, so I put on record my appreciation for their hard work. The Tweed-Byron Local Area Command cover a very diverse region with sometimes very differing challenges. The New South Wales North Coast is a growing population with very busy tourist areas, which of course creates its own issues when the population greatly increases at peak times.

For many reasons, policing can be a very difficult job, and recognition from the broader community is very important. As I have said, with National Police Remembrance Day falling on 29 September each year, it provides an occasion for all of us to honour those officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty. The first remembrance day was held in September 1989. Since that time the commemorations and awareness have really increased within our community. This year services were held right across the country to mark this very significant day. My husband and I were police officers in Queensland. I would like to note that there were many very well-attended candlelight vigils, marches and memorial services held right throughout the state.

Today I would like to focus a bit on the New South Wales police. Since the inception of the New South Wales police in 1862, 254 members of the New South Wales Police Force have died in the line of duty. This year on remembrance day, New South Wales Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione said that National Police Remembrance Day is a time for everyone in the policing family to come together and honour those who have made the ultimate sacrifice. He further said:

National Police Remembrance Day is about recognising the incredible courage of those officers who've lost their lives while serving the community of New South Wales. It is with great sorrow that we pause to remember two of our beloved policing colleagues; Curtis Cheng and Sergeant Geoffrey Richardson. … The tragedy of their passing is a sober reminder of the continued dangers that thousands of brave men and women face each day in service to the community, where there's no way of knowing what potential risk they may face. Our deepest sympathies go out to the Cheng and Richardson families; today we honour the memory of their loved ones and reflect on the dedicated service and bravery of all police officers.

These are very appropriate words by Commissioner Scipione. I echo his condolences and sympathies to the Cheng and Richardson families. Our greatest sympathies go to all in those families.

We see a number of police monuments through various states. We have our national police monument as well. It is located here in Canberra and was completed in 2006, with the names of 719 fallen officers who have given their lives in the line of duty. Their names are inscribed on a wall of brass touch stones. These touch stones include the officers' ranks, names jurisdictions, places and dates of death.

This year's service saw those two names added as well as another five historic nominations. The addition of these seven names brings the total number of officers listed on the National Police Memorial to 764. It is important to note that this year, 2016, marked the 10th anniversary of the National Police Memorial in Canberra. The day is also important because it provides a time to remember police officers who lost their lives through illness or other circumstances, and a day for the general community to pause and thank those who serve in the police services.

I would also like to touch on the contribution of Police Legacy and acknowledge the outstanding job that they do throughout the country. They were originally founded to help bereaved families fighting the loss of their loved ones, but their support now extends to include police officers and their families experiencing challenging and difficult times in their lives. So I thank Police Legacy for the outstanding work that they continue to do. It is highly valued and respected.

I am pleased to speak on this motion in relation to National Police Remembrance Day, particularly as a former police officer. It is an opportunity for all of us to remember not only those police officers who died whilst serving but also the sacrifices that police officers and their families make. I would like to thank all police officers and their families right across the country, particularly in my electorate and those in the Tweed Byron local area command. Thank you for your service and also thank you to your families for the sacrifices we know that they make.

Damian Drum (Murray, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am grateful to have the opportunity to speak on this motion on National Police Remembrance Day. Like all other members of parliament, I am sure, I spent a portion of my day on 29 September at a local service commemorating the sacrifice of fallen policemen. I was able to do that at St Pauls Lutheran Church in Shepparton. It was the most amazing service and amongst those there was a range of new Australians from the African council who were able to join in the singing and the celebration of the lives that have been lost.

The concept of Police Remembrance Day takes on a special significance when you go to Shepparton due to a very high profile case, still unsolved—that is, the gutless murder of Damian Eyre and Steven Tynan. Those killings took place in 1988. Being a Shepparton boy, Damian's death was felt very strongly. His dad, Frank, served 45 years in the Victoria Police and Frank's two boys, Damian and Daryl, followed in his footsteps in the force. So it was an absolute tragedy when Damian was murdered.

Out of absolute tragedy some positives can arise. The Blue Ribbon Foundation was formed, in a sense, with these killings very fresh in their minds. The Blue Ribbon Foundation do a huge amount of good work right around Australia and certainly around Victoria. It is a positive that has come out of these senseless killings. Also, some memorial scholarships are now embedded in Victoria Police and the Tynan Eyre emergency unit has been built at Shepparton hospital. All of these memorials and tributes to Damian Eyre and Steven Tynan are very real, but do not take away from the fact that so many of our police men and women on the beat today and everyday are putting their lives in danger.

As the previous speaker—whose husband is a policeman—happened to note, we need to acknowledge the families that accept the risk associated with their loved ones' roles. Certainly, they make an ongoing sacrifice every day by knowingly sending their loved ones out to work on the beat, knowing that they deal with trouble and incredibly difficult issues every day. This is something that we need to occasionally reflect on; that we have high expectations of our police force—our police men and women. We need to be very aware of the dangers.

At the moment the police sector in Victoria has a very significant issue coming out of the former state coalition government. I must acknowledge the former police minister, Peter Ryan, who went to a 2010 election with a pledge to introduce 940 additional police. The then Labor Party opposition said it could not be done. He spent four years proving that it could be done and brought 1,940 additional police into the sector. He also introduced the PSOs—930 additional protective services officers to man every train station from dark through to the last train. Again, this has been a policy that has had a tremendous impact.

So, we just need more police. We need to acknowledge the risk that they put themselves in every day, and the mainstream public need to acknowledge and respect that police are doing this work and protecting the community. (Time expired)

Luke Gosling (Solomon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am very pleased to be speaking on this important motion today. I commend the member for Fowler for moving this motion—he is a good man. I note the contributions made by previous speakers acknowledging the significant contribution of police, supported by their families and mates, to our local communities, and the high degree of risk and personal sacrifice that comes with carrying out their duty.

I was talking with some Afghanistan veterans recently about awareness-raising around the issue of PTSD. I said to them I wanted to include emergency services and police officers in some of that awareness-raising work, and one of these combat veterans said, 'Bloody oath, they are on the tools dealing with stuff every day'—that is a policeman he is talking about. Now, policing is difficult and the environments are often complex and dangerous. Often there are near misses. Sometimes there are injuries and sometimes officers are killed. As the opening quote from our Darwin Police Remembrance Day booklet reminded us, 'Greater love hath no one than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends.'

National Police Remembrance Day is held on 29 September as this is the feast day of Saint Michael, the archangel and patron saint of police. Interestingly, Saint Michael is considered a defender of good against evil by all three of the great monotheistic religions of the world: Christianity, Judaism and Islam, and all three faiths hold Saint Michael in great esteem.

Police are not the only ones who are said to have Saint Michael's patronage, as he also watches over grocers, mariners and paratroopers—I had forgotten this, but then remembered that a mate of mine at the 3rd Battalion always jumped with a Saint Michael necklace around his neck for protection and I am pretty sure it always worked. St Michael is also the patron of hat makers, Papua New Guinea, emergency medical technicians, radiologists, ambulance drivers and bakers.

In my electorate of Solomon, we commemorated National Police Remembrance Day at a humbling service at my parish, Saint Mary's Star of the Sea Cathedral, in Smith Street, Darwin. Alongside serving and retired police, military personnel and their beloved families and friends, I was moved by a very powerful homily by the Bishop of the NT, the Most Reverend Eugene Hurley. Bishop Hurley spoke about his pride that generally speaking, we, as people, can tell right from wrong and about how we try our best to act on the highest good. But, sadly and often tragically, this is not always the case.

Bishop Hurley highlighted that police hold great positions of trust within society and communities and as the keepers of peace and maintainers of order. He expressed that this should never replace the responsibility of the individual to do the right thing of their own volition, particularly to act in good faith to maintain peace and respectful relationships within families.

This year's service was also poignant, as Curtis Cheng's name was added to the national memorial as a result of his tragic death, which occurred during his service for the New South Wales Police last year.

As you know, it is important that we politicians are measured in our debate in this place. I would like it recorded in the Hansard that Curtis Cheng's son, Alpha Cheng, who is a teacher here in Canberra, recently used an open letter to call on Senator Hanson to stop linking his father's death and the Sydney Lindt Cafe siege to comments about the Muslim community that promote fear and exclusion within the community. I believe our police forces have a good culture of promoting multiculturalism and tolerance, and this should be commended and continued. I also believe making such connections for base political purposes actually makes the jobs of officers working in those communities much more difficult.

I personally know so many good police officers. They are stand-up people. I want to particularly acknowledge some of the Territory's officers, including Sean Parnell for his decades of solid work and his assistance with this statement, and my friend Geoff Bahnert, as well as Paul McCue from the Police Association for his work to achieve better conditions for officers and his provision of policy advice to government that will assist with the conduct of safer and more successful community policing. I also want to acknowledge the NT chapter of Police Legacy. They do a great job supporting the families.

As we have heard, nine police officers from Australia, New Zealand and the south-west Pacific are known to have passed away in the last 12 months. I want to pass on my respect and gratitude to their families. May they all rest in peace and with honour. (Time expired)

John McVeigh (Groom, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is an honour to rise in support of this motion. Our electorate of Groom, like many other regional communities across this country, deals with challenges that, if unchecked, can affect the wellbeing and safety of our entire community. In our case, our city of Toowoomba sits at the intersection of three major highways—the Warrego, Gore and New England—which link us to the north, south, east and west. Whilst this infrastructure provides exciting opportunities for the Darling Downs community, it does present issues with, for example, the scourge of drugs, which are either transported or traded in our region. It is our Queensland Police Service that investigates, curtails and stamps out this despicable trade where possible—more often than not, placing themselves in danger in doing so.

Similarly, such infrastructure presents road safety challenges, and we should never forget it is our fine serving women and men of the Queensland Police Service who are often the first respondents to tragedies on our roads, who manage accident investigation sites, and of course, at times deliver sad news to the loved ones of those involved.

We must always prioritise the necessary support for serving and retired police officers, who provide such service to all of us. Whether it is tragedy, major crime, natural disaster or petty theft, it is our police service that is always there on the front line to serve and protect us all. Certainly, my community of Groom, in and around Toowoomba, has seen its fair share of all of those issues.

It was my great pleasure, and in particular my great honour, on 28 and 29 December to join with Deputy Commissioner Steven Gollschewski, Assistant Commissioner Tony Wright, District Superintendent Mark Kelly and many other serving and retired members of the Queensland Police Service in our southern Queensland police region to remember those fine officers we have lost over the decades. It was moving to hear my good mate, Inspector Michael Curtin, recite the names of those officers we have lost, from Constable Matthew Connelly in 1861, right through to Constable Damien Gerard Acutt in 2005.

As our police chaplain, the Reverend Jeff Baills, quite rightly said: 'We remember the lives of these police officers and we honour their sacrifice. We regard the lives of these police officers as we value their commitment and efforts in protecting our community. We respond to the lives of these police officers for the greatest gratitude of a community is to recognise the price that has been paid to uphold its freedom.'

The Reverend Jeff Baills went on to say: 'We gather not only to raise awareness of those police officers who have gone before us; we also stand alongside our current sworn officers, where on the badge they wear every day is written the statement "With honour we serve". As a community, we come together to honour your commitment and to stand with you as we honour those who have gone before you.'

These are the words with which he concluded, and no truer words could be said about those fine men and women of the Queensland Police Service as examples of similar officers right across the country who do protect and serve all of us.

Steve Irons (Swan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The time allotted for this debate has expired. The debate is adjourned and the resumption of the debate will be made an order of the day for the next sitting.