Thursday, 31 October 2024

 Nick McGOWAN (North-Eastern Metropolitan) (10:14): What is it about machetes that the Labor Party of Victoria so dearly love? They had an opportunity some 12 months ago to rid this state of machetes. They are a dastardly tool and one that in many parts of the world has a horrific history, and yet in Victoria today we have an abundance of them still. It is bad enough that we have an epidemic of knives. We all know how easy they are to conceal. We all know how easy they are to use. We also know how deadly the consequences can be. And yet, when provided with the opportunity to rid Victoria of machetes, the Labor Party of Victoria baulked. It is beyond my comprehension how in the year 2024 anyone in their right mind thinks any Victorian needs to walk around with a machete, but that is precisely what is happening in Ringwood at the moment. Picture this if you will: at 1:45 in the morning, so 1:45 am, CCTV footage captures three young individuals making a house call – not the kind of house call we like. Of course they are carrying with them machetes, they are looking for keys and they are looking to enter property. This is a common occurrence in Victoria today, and the party who could have stopped it is the state government and the Labor Party, and they are refusing to do so.