POLICE — OPERATION
REGIONAL SHIELD — KIMBERLEY
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Member
for Kimberley, I see you and assume you are seeking the call. The member for
Kimberley has the call.
60. Ms D.G. D'ANNA to the Minister for Police:
I refer to the McGowan Labor
government's commitment to address the challenges in the regions. Can
the minister update the house on the outcomes of Operation Regional Shield and
outline how this operation is targeting antisocial criminal offending and
broader challenges in the Kimberley?
Mr P.
PAPALIA replied:
Member, you are looking good on the
big screen! I thank the member for the question. I also thank her for the
incredible leadership that she demonstrates in the Kimberley. As members know,
we travelled there last week and I was witness to the respect and esteem with
which the member is viewed right across communities in several towns, but I know
it is right across the Kimberley. It is incredibly impressive to see such a powerful
voice for the Kimberley, who is normally resident here in the chamber, but up
there today.
The Premier acknowledged in his
address to Parliament that some of the challenges we are confronting in the
Kimberley and the Pilbara are multi-generational in nature. They have been
generated over decades, if not more, of disadvantage and impoverishment. The
consequences are challenges that we confront that will not be solved with one
simple solution, that will not be done in a short period, but will require a significant
effort by all tiers of government, local communities, non-government
organisations and individuals right across the regions to assist in rectifying
the challenges that people confront in their daily lives, particularly juvenile
offending.
We
went to the Kimberley to announce part of the response of government that the
Premier referred to in his speech—that is, the police response, Operation Regional Shield, which is a capability.
It is effectively a model that can be applied anywhere in the regions, and it constitutes a range of capabilities and
capacity that can be taken and adapted, and sent to a particular region at any time, to confront and deal with an acute
challenge and assist local authorities in overcoming that challenge and moving forward. That is
what we did in Broome last Wednesday with Deputy Commissioner Col Blanch and
the member for Kimberley. We told the people about the comprehensive commitment
by the Western Australia Police Force to tackle juvenile crime, particularly in
the subdistrict of Broome at the moment, but right across the Kimberley in due
course. Some of the resources that are being deployed include the Police Air Wing, including fixed-wing and remotely piloted
aircraft systems—what we all call drones—and the pilots
necessary to operate them; the regional operations group; additional ROG
officers with two specialist transport vehicles; a regional investigation unit, including specialist investigators and
technology specialists from our technology crime unit, which is
supported by cutting-edge technology; our forensic division, which has deployed
people up there with equipment that enables
forensics to be employed in the field in the Kimberley; as well as a general
purpose dog and handler from the canine unit. There are many other
specialist capabilities that we will not reveal, but we will ensure that there
is an enhanced response to the crime challenges that confront the community out
there.
In response to what has happened, I
can report that there has been an immediate reduction in crime across Broome.
In the week that the operation has been underway, we have seen more than a 63 per
cent reduction in some of the crimes. For example, for selected offences
against property, which are the crimes that are most concerning, last week
there were five burglaries and in the week before there were some 24 burglaries
in Broome. There have been no vehicle thefts since the morning of 14 February, and,
in the time shortly prior to that, there were some four in that week. As a result
of the outstanding work by the Western Australia Police Force, there have been
18 arrests resulting in 36 charges and six summonses.
There is another element to this.
Police are engaging with young people who are at risk. If they find children
out in the streets at night who might be at risk, or in the daytime who should
be in school but are not, they are taking duty
of care for them and ensuring that they are either returned to a safe place or
returned safely to the police station. I can tell members that 83
children were escorted by police in this fashion.
It is an incredible response by
police. It is having immediate returns for the community and increasing the
safety of everybody, including the young people involved. This is only one part
of the Premier's announced response. As indicated in his speech to
Parliament, there will be a four-pronged response. It will include policing,
which will be ongoing. Regional Shield will be deployed wherever it is required
in the state on an ongoing basis. There is also a commitment to roll out the
Target 120 program across the Kimberley and the Pilbara. That will mean the
benefits of that program will be delivered to towns other than Kununurra, where
it is currently operating. There is also a commitment to an on-country
sentencing option as an alternative to incarcerating children in Banksia Hill
Detention Centre in Perth. Finally, a fund will also be created to enable
communities to come forward with their own proposals to address community
safety right across the Kimberley and apply for funding to implement community
driven responses.
It is a wonderful thing to see the
member for Kimberley in action. I am sorry she is not here, but I am glad that
she is up there, representing her community right on the ground and making sure
that we all know what is going on in the Kimberley.