Friday, 14 November 2025

 Nicole WERNER (Warrandyte) (10:28): No-one believes that the Premier will act on crime. For years she and her government have denied that there is a crime crisis in Victoria. Members of her government have taken to social media to belittle and bully victims of crime, saying to victims that they are whingeing and their concerns and feelings are not valid. The Premier’s own Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events said just last month, ‘It is not accurate to describe this as a youth crime crisis.’ Her Treasurer and former Attorney-General said last month, ‘No, mate. There is not a youth crime crisis.’ It is a disgusting show of disdain from the Premier and members of her government, who are telling victims that their feelings are wrong, their experiences do not count. While families like that of Ash Gordon are mourning the loss of loved ones and families across Melbourne are worried about home invasions, carjackings and machete violence, the Premier and her government cut funding to crime prevention in last year’s budget and looked the other way. So now, with an election to go, there is the backflip. All of a sudden – shock, horror – apparently there is a crime crisis, despite it being one of their own making when they weakened the bail laws. Apparently now they want to get serious about it when months ago, according to them, it did not even exist. The Premier is so serious about it that she has printed the posters and the backdrops with her slogans but never even bothered to write the legislation to go with it. Victorians deserve better than the gaslighting, belittling and disdain we have seen from the Allan Labor government. We are not buying it. They are panicked and they are desperate. They know they are running out of time.