Source : Perth Now news
More police will be on the beat as one state tries to tackle its crime crisis.
Victorian Premier Ben Carroll pledged to boost numbers on the frontline, adding 1500 extra police to the streets.
His announcement means that whoever wins power after the November state election, Victoria will see at least 1500 new officers on the beat.
He also announced that if his government was returned to power in the November state election, it would build a new police training facility in the state’s west.
The new police academy will open in Wyndham to help boost the number of recruits and would run alongside the Glen Waverley based academy.
It’s been long suggested that a secondary site was needed to make training more accessible to would-be police recruits across Melbourne.
“My priority is community safety,” Mr Carroll told reporters on Sunday.
Police numbers in Victoria have been falling since the Covid pandemic, with vacancies peaking at 1500 jobs.
Chief Commissioner Mike Bush has previously flagged his desire to return force numbers to above 17,000 and a suite of changes designed to get graduates on the beat faster.
Mr Carroll said his election promise would do just that.
The Victorian Liberals and Nationals promised in April to return the state’s police force to full strength, with an additional 3000 officers to be recruited if they win the 2026 election.
Coalition leader Jess Wilson said, if elected, her government would reopen more than 40 closed or reduced hours police station.
According to the Crime Statistics Agency Victoria, the state’s overall recorded crime rate fell by 1.9 per cent, driven by a reduction in youth crime and repeat offending.
Overall crime levels remain 26 per cent higher than three years ago.
Police union boss Wayne Gatt welcomed the proposed plan to reduce bottlenecks and get recruits on the frontline sooner.
“We’ve long said that we need more police and we need them delivered to the frontline more efficiently,” Mr Gatt said.
He said the second academy site in the west “makes sense” given the influx of recruits waiting to go through the current Glen Waverley Academy.
“The sooner Victoria Police is in lock step with the broader workforce, by employing prospective recruits within weeks and not months, and training them closer to where they live and work, the more achievable that aspiration becomes.”
Opposition spokesperson Brad Battin said Mr Carroll had already closed four new police stations since becoming premier.
“Now just before an election, he wants to pretend that he’s going to do something about it?” Mr Battin told reporters in Berwick on Sunday, where he was joined by Ms Wilson to announce a $607 million upgrade to Thompsons Road if they win the election.
“Ask the people who have had the offenders come into their home when they call the police and can’t get the response. We’re saying we need 3000 new police here in Victoria.”
