Watchhouse Review lifts lid on Labor’s shameful legacy

• Queensland Police Watchhouse Review exposes Labor’s decade of neglect that left police working in unsafe, crumbling watchhouses.
• More than 37,000 frontline police shifts lost each year to transport and hospital duties under Labor.
• The Crisafulli Government has already allocated more than $16 million for watchhouse remediation works and will continue to deliver urgent reforms to restore safety, standards and support for police. 

The Crisafulli Government has released a damning review into Queensland’s police watchhouses, exposing ten years of Labor failure that left frontline officers working in unsafe, unfit and under-resourced facilities. 

Initiated in August 2024 by the Queensland Police Commissioner, the Watchhouse Review was sparked by years of ignored coronial findings and mounting pressure from frontline police. 

It reveals the scale of Labor’s decade of neglect, from failing infrastructure and inadequate staffing to dangerous delays in maintenance that compromised the safety of officers and the broader community. 

Key findings include:  

• In 2024 alone, more than 37,000 police shifts (nearly 300,000 hours) were diverted from frontline duties to transports and hospital guards, highlighting the systemic strain placed on operational police under Labor.
• Nearly 25 per cent of prisoners were held beyond the intended 72-hour limit, including children, leading to increased risk of self-harm.
• It also identified critical infrastructure failures, including broken CCTV, unfit holding cells, and inconsistent training and maintenance across facilities, with off-duty police often being called upon to clean cells.
• Much of the Review identified issues related to watchhouses becoming, over time, long-term prisons under the former Labor Government.   

The Crisafulli Government has already acted to begin restoring safety and standards for police in Queensland’s watchhouses, with key reforms including:  

• More than $16 million already invested for remediation works to fast-track safety, privacy and infrastructure upgrades.
• A whole-of-government transport model to return police to frontline duties.
• Centralised contracts for cleaning, training and maintenance to deliver consistency and accountability.
• Capital works planning to modernise outdated facilities.
• Mandating training and improved recruitment to strengthen the custodial workforce. 

Minister for Police and Emergency Services Dan Purdie said the Review exposed a decade of dysfunction and disregard under Labor who failed to support police.  

"Police were left to manage broken-down facilities, mould-infested cells, and technology failures, all while juggling court transports, hospital guard duties and managing at-risk detainees without adequate support,” Minister Purdie said. 

“The findings of the Review highlight Labor’s answer to overcrowded jails were to use police watchhouses instead of prisons.  

“The Crisafulli Government is backing frontline police – who deserve better – with the resources they need and putting dignity, safety and common sense back into the system. 

“I want to thank the hard-working staff working in watchhouses for the work they do, day in day out, under difficult and challenging circumstances.”