QUEENSLAND DECLINES PARTICIPATION IN INDIGENOUS POLICING REVIEW

Police Minister Judy Spence will write to Federal Minister for Indigenous Affairs, Mal Brough, to decline Queensland’s participation in a national review of policing levels in indigenous communities.

Ms Spence said she was surprised by his announcement yesterday of the review, saying she had clearly stated Queensland’s position at the Indigenous Summit in Canberra in June.

She said she was considering conducting a review of staffing levels of the Australian Federal Police in Queensland – saying state police were daily performing their federal responsibilities.

“At the summit I made it clear that review of indigenous policing in Queensland was not necessary, because we were more than happy to publicly state the number of police officers in our indigenous communities,” Ms Spence said.

“As a result, today I will be writing to Mr Brough to decline Qld’s participation in this review.

“Our level of policing in indigenous communities would set a benchmark for other states to follow.

“We already have some of Australia’s highest police to population ratios.”

Ms Spence said Queensland’s statewide police to population ratio was better than the national average, and even higher in many indigenous communities.

“The national police to population ratio is one officer to every 440 people. We do better than that in Queensland where our statewide police to population ratio is one officer for every 438 people,” Ms Spence said.

“In aboriginal communities like Kowanyama this is one officer for every 115 people, on Palm Island it is one officer for every 135 people, and in Doomadgee it is one officer for every 126 people.”

Ms Spence said Queensland police officers were daily performing Commonwealth work, such as assisting immigration functions, border security, customs and even watching over federal prisoners in Queensland watchhouses and prisons.

“So short is the Australian Government of police officers, that Queensland is continually being asked by the Commonwealth to send our police overseas for international deployment to places such as East Timor and the Solomon Islands,” Ms Spence said.

“The Federal Government cannot even provide enough federal police to provide a permanent police presence at our airports. It’s asking the Queensland Government to do this for them.

“There is only one AFP officer in the Torres Strait.

“Instead of bothering about whether Queensland is discharging its responsibility in indigenous communities, the Federal Government should be taking a long hard look at its own shortcomings in the federal policing arena.

“I am considering whether the Queensland Government should review the staffing levels of the Australian Federal Police in Queensland in order to determine whether there are sufficient AFP numbers for them to adequately discharge their federal responsibilities.”

Ms Spence said yesterday’s announcement of a review without proper consultation with the states was a ‘hamfisted and amateurish attempt to subordinate the states’.

“This announcement is in keeping with John Howard’s doctrine of federalism and his attempt to run Queensland from Canberra,” Ms Spence said.

“If the federal government wants to spend some of its promised $130 million package to improve law and order in indigenous communties then it should give us some of that money to support our police in the Torres Strait in particular, where they spend much of their time undertaking duties which should be done by the Federal Government.”

Media contact: Alison Smith 3239 6218 / 0439 673 287