Wednesday, 1 April 2026

 John PESUTTO (Hawthorn) (14:16): My question is to the Premier. Residents of Sunhill Road in Glen Iris have been hit by nine criminal incidents in recent months, including four serious home invasions and carjackings in just one week. Why does the Premier claim police are resourced when the nearest station in Camberwell is closed at night and on weekends?

 Jacinta ALLAN (Bendigo East – Premier) (14:17): In acknowledging and thanking the member for Hawthorn for his question, I again remind the member for Hawthorn of the detail I provided to the house earlier. We are giving Victoria Police the tools, the resources and the powers and we are backing it with new laws like adult time for violent crime, which specifically targets some of those offences that the member for Hawthorn raised. It comes from, if the member for Hawthorn does not mind me referring to them, the residents, his constituents, who he brought to Parliament last year and who the Attorney and I, with the member for Hawthorn, met with last year to hear directly from about their experience of a deeply traumatic home invasion that involved them and their kids. It is from listening to families like that that we have introduced adult time for violent crime, dealing with and recognising this new type of behaviour that needed new responses.

James Newbury: On a point of order, Speaker, I renew my point of order from earlier on debating the question. Every single question when we ask about police stations, the Premier debates the question and is evasive in refusing to deal with the substance of the question.

Mary-Anne Thomas: Speaker, on the point of order, there is no point of order. The Premier is not debating the question. She is addressing the question in its entirety, which she is entirely entitled to do.

The SPEAKER: I do not uphold the point of order.

Jacinta ALLAN: In addition to those new laws and tougher powers, we have also invested $4.5 billion in more police personnel, which has seen 3600 more police added into Victoria Police, which is why not only is it the largest police force in the country but Victoria’s real recurrent police expenditure per person is higher than many other states, including New South Wales and Queensland. It is because we back the work of Victoria Police that there are more police officers. The chief commissioner, through the work he is doing based on data and intelligence, is getting those police officers out on the streets.

James Newbury: On a point of order, Speaker, on relevance, this question went to a police station being shut. How can it possibly be relevant for the Premier to keep reading the same talking points no matter what the question we ask is?

The SPEAKER: The Premier is being relevant to the question.

Jacinta ALLAN: As part of the work of the chief commissioner in transforming Victoria Police, he is taking that resource, the largest police force in the nation, and ensuring that it is based on data and intelligence out on the streets, preventing and responding to crime. We will continue to back the operational decisions of the Chief Commissioner of Victoria Police, because it is based on data and intelligence, not on politicians.

 John PESUTTO (Hawthorn) (14:20): Crime in Boroondara has risen by over 13 per cent in a year. At the same time, police numbers have fallen by 5 per cent. Why has the government failed to fill the 1500 vacancies on police rosters to keep Victorians safe?

 Jacinta ALLAN (Bendigo East – Premier) (14:21): In regard to the question of vacancies that the member for Hawthorn referred to, I believe I did address this matter in part yesterday, but I am happy to provide this information again for the benefit of the member for Hawthorn. We do acknowledge that Victoria Police has a number of vacancies, a situation that is being experienced by policing forces around the country. It is why we have backed Victoria Police with funding for the Made for More campaign. It is why we are backing the work of the chief commissioner to put double shifts through the academy, and those efforts will work to fill those vacancies to get more people to come and join the largest police force in the nation.