Wednesday, 18 March 2020

Members statements

Neerim and district police resources

Mr BLACKWOOD (Narracan) (09:39): The township of Neerim South is very concerned at the lack of police resources and the growing need for a greater police presence in the town, especially on weekends. The Neerim South police station is allocated officers to provide a 12-hour service seven days a week in the town. Unfortunately, officers are called in to backfill at Warragul on a very regular basis, leaving the town with no police resources for days on end. There is a critical shortage of police numbers right across the Baw Baw shire. The police numbers do not match the growing population, and Warragul and Drouin continue to experience massive population growth. Just recently a Neerim South resident had reason to ring for police assistance at around 1.30 am Sunday morning. The response he received from the officer he spoke to was that he was the only member in the station, and the one and only divisional van operating across the whole of Baw Baw shire was already dealing with another call-out.

There are many occasions throughout the year that demand extra police presence in Neerim South. The snow season on Mount Baw Baw from June to October, the extra activity in the bush with trail bike riders and four-wheel drives most of the year and, during spring, summer and autumn, the enormous influx of visitors to the area on weekends demands a much better police presence than having to send someone from Warragul. The Minister for Police and Emergency Services must address this situation immediately. It is not fair on our hardworking, committed police officers to expect them to cover such a large area with so few resources. It is unacceptable that the Neerim and district area is now feeling very vulnerable because their police station is unmanned for the majority of the week.