Wednesday, 4 March 2026

 John BERGER (Southern Metropolitan) (12:57): I welcome the Victorian government’s announcement of key reforms to address the issue of youth crime. Victorians will see more local visible police and protective services officers patrolling their communities. Through data and intelligence, visible police and PSOs will be deployed to target crime when and where it is likely. Additionally the Allan Labor government plans to invest an initial $19.8 million to establish the violence reduction unit and an additional $7.7 million for youth mentoring programs. Modelled after the UK and Scotland, it aims to connect young people with reformed offenders as well as 20 social workers in targeted schools as early intervention for tackling youth crime. These key efforts show that our state is taking important steps forward in addressing the root cause of youth crime and supporting safer communities. My question for the Minister for Police is: what improvements can my community of Southern Metro Region expect to see as a result of these initiatives?