Queensland Youth Crime Crisis: Police numbers in freefall
Police numbers fall by a further 120 in five months
The thin blue line is becoming perilously thinner in Queensland, with shocking revelations frontline police numbers have dropped by a further 120 officers in just five short months.
An LNP Question on Notice to the Youth Justice Reform Select Committee Inquiry has exposed police numbers fell from 12,225 to 12,105 between June and November.
Alarmingly, in the past 18 months, Queensland’s police service has shrunk by 322 frontline officers, in the middle of a deadly Youth Crime Crisis.
This is despite Labor promising to deliver an additional 1450 frontline police by 2024.
Leader of the Opposition David Crisafulli said the Queensland Youth Crime Crisis was created by Labor’s weak laws and fewer police, and fueled by their chaos and crisis.
“Queensland police numbers are in freefall while this Labor Government is consumed by their own survival,” Mr Crisafulli said.
“The only thing falling faster than police numbers is confidence in Labor to keep their election promises.
“Queenslanders deserve to have police on the ground to respond in the middle of a Youth Crime Crisis.
“It’s clear Labor is in chaos and crisis, they have the wrong priorities and don’t take youth crime seriously.
“There is no credible plan to deliver the police our community needs and was promised by this Labor Government.
“Labor’s promise of an additional 1450 police can’t be met and no one is being held accountable for the decline in community safety as a result.
“Only the LNP has the right priorities for Queensland’s future, including making our community safe.
“The LNP has put solutions on the table to start tackling Queensland’s Youth Crime Crisis, including creating consequences for actions, unshackling the judiciary by removing detention as a last resort and delivering gold standard early intervention.”