Rosalie Woodruff MP | Greens' Police spokesperson
This year’s Department of Police, Fire and Emergency Management Annual Report confirms on almost every crime measure the Liberals have promised to act, the statistics are not good.
The Liberals’ ‘tough on crime’ policies are turning one-time offenders into serial criminals and making the community less safe.
In the last year, serious crimes have gone up 11%, high-risk traffic offences are up 8%, and crime in general is increasing.
The number of people who are diverted away from a path of crime and into drug rehabilitation has gone down by 22%. ‘Tough on crime’ is an epic failure.
Against the advice of the Sentencing Advisory Council, the government’s own group of legal experts, the Liberals are pushing ahead with legislation to remove suspended sentences. This will only add to the ballooning number of people in Risdon Prison, and a corrections system at breaking point.
We need to focus on rehabilitating offenders, so they don’t re-offend. That’s what makes the community safer.
The Liberals want their pound of flesh from people who break the law, even if this means creating more victims in the future. This just leads to more crime, and more serious criminals.