GOVERNMENT DISMISSES EAST GIPPSLAND POLICE CRISIS

Police numbers in East Gippsland are well down, but the State Government simply does not care, according to Eastern Victoria MP Peter Hall.

Mr Hall raised the issue in Parliament this week as a means of forcing the Police Minister to investigate why police numbers are so low, but the State Government attempted to have his question disallowed.

Mr Hall was incensed when a Government Minister refused to investigate the issue. “The Government demonstrated arrogant disinterest in the people and the issues of East Gippsland.

Earlier in the Parliament, Mr Hall raised the matter for the attention of the Minister for Police and Emergency Services, following a recent tour of East Gippsland and discussions with local community members.


“Chief among their concerns was the lack of police numbers at the Orbost police station,” Mr Hall told Parliament.

“I believe, and the local chamber of commerce believes, that only three of the eight positions at Orbost are filled currently, and that situation is expected to worsen in the near future. Indeed I noted public comments from the Police Association quoted in this week's local paper which suggest that there are seven vacancies at the Orbost police station.”

Mr Hall said police members were being forced to work extremely long hours to provide services and, when times are desperate, call in officers from other stations. The problem is, other stations are also low on numbers.

“The sharing of resources between police stations is a common and usual practice for the police, to ensure the numbers are appropriately spread and shifts are covered, but when nearby police stations are also threadbare in the number of officer positions filled, then there are simply not enough officers to go around,” Mr Hall said.

“The traffic operations group at Orbost has not been fully staffed for at least three years.” He added that while theoretically Lakes Entrance is to become a 24-hour station, it does not have the resources to meet its current 16-hour service provision.

“Also, there are just two officers at Cann River, who are expected to provide a 16-hour service. The situation is causing great community outrage, and it seems that this government is doing precious little to address the problem,” Mr Hall said.

The Nationals’ MP called on the Police Minister and the government to explain how it is going to provide Victoria Police with the resources to enable adequate policing services to Orbost and the whole of East Gippsland.

But he was furious when the senior Government member in the Upper House, Theo Theophanous, tried to push the issue away so the Government would not have to respond.
Mr Hall said the Minister was trying to play politics with the safety of people in East Gippsland.

“Trying to push my question to one side, so that it would never reach the appropriate Minister, showed total disregard for the people of East Gippsland,” Mr Hall said. “The issue is that police numbers in East Gippsland are way down, and it is a legitimate question to find out what the Government is going to do about it.

“I will pursue the Police Minister and the Government to get an answer.”