MAKE no mistake, the shortage of police, especially in country areas where there’s a big influx of visitors from the Melbourne metro area, has a direct impact on the health, safety and wellbeing of the local community.
Certainly, we applaud the efforts of police in recent days, working hard to round up those involved in the fearful shooting in the residential streets of Wonthaggi last week.
And, when it comes to major crime and responding to serious incidents, including fatal collisions on the road, Victoria Police always bring their highly experienced teams and task forces in to bolster the efforts of local police.
But staff shortages caused by 800 vacancies, according to the Police Association of Victoria, with 900 on long-term sick leave means that 43 stations across the state have been forced to close at night while others struggle just to get patrols on the road.
It’s a situation we have seen in Bass Coast and South Gippsland in recent times.
“Community safety is being put at risk,” says the police association on the front page of its website and we’ve got no reason to doubt it.
So, while major crime and serious incidents are getting the attention they deserve, the shortage of police is impacting general policing, dealing with the scourge of domestic violence, addressing the rise in youth crime and taking on one of the main root causes of local crime generally, the illicit drug trade.
Why, for example, when police know where all of the illegal tobacco is being sold, don’t they just shut them down?
And why, when they know where and by whom all the drugs are being sold locally, don’t they simply deal with it?
Because it’s a matter of priorities when you don’t have the police numbers you need.
It’s not that there isn’t a problem locally.
The total number of crime incidents in Bass Coast were up by 17.1 per cent in the 12 months to the end of September 2024 and in South Gippsland up by 8.8 per cent.
Breaches of family violence orders lead the way in both LGAs as the most common offence but criminal damage and thefts, including motor vehicle thefts, are right up there.
What’s needed with these classes of crime is a bigger pre-emptive effort but you need more police resources for that.
The general community is frustrated with the waste of taxpayer dollars and the diversion of government funds away from the basics including law and order, health, education, road maintenance and land management to fund an unwieldy public service, social engineering, questionable energy strategy and the corruption and overpricing associated with major projects.
The State Government needs to address the issues of recruitment, retention, unpaid overtime and burnout with the state’s police force, as a matter of urgency, before one in four leave the force, as they’ve indicated they will, over the next 12 months.