Ted Baillieu’s latest half-hearted stunt on law and order again proves the Opposition treat Victorians with contempt regarding public safety, Police Minister Bob Cameron said today.
Mr Cameron said police already had the power to ban troublemakers from licensed venues and entertainment precincts.
“Ted Baillieu is so lazy on law and order policy that he forgot that two years ago he tried to sabotage Labor legislation to ban drunken louts from entertainment precincts. Mr Baillieu knows powers to ban troublemakers already exist because he opposed them,” Mr Cameron said.
“Under our laws, police can immediately ban troublemakers from licensed venues and entertainment precincts for 24 hours and apply for court orders to ban people for up to a year.
“Police are getting on with the job of keeping our streets safe and so far have issued around 1800 banning notices to troublemakers.
“This shows the Liberal Party has no new ideas and no positive agenda for Victoria - and is not seriously committed to making our streets safer.
“Ted Baillieu’s heart is not in it. He’s not prepared to do the hard work when it comes to community safety. He opposes everything and stands for nothing.”
Mr Cameron said the Liberals would not commit to supporting further police powers announced recently by the Premier to keep the community safe, including:
- New random search powers for weapons;
- New move on powers; and
- New offences and penalties for drunks.
So far, Ted Baillieu and the Liberal Party have opposed or attempted to water down laws:
- to allow police to ban troublemakers;
- to immediately shut down problem venues;
- to ban inappropriate alcohol and venue promotions;
- to introduce a dedicated Compliance Directorate assisting police to enforce our liquor laws; and
- to regulate boozy party buses.
Actions taken by the Brumby Labor Government to make our streets safer include:
- More police on the frontline than ever before;
- Doubling penalties for carrying weapons;
- A freeze on late night licences in Melbourne’s inner city; and
- Additional powers for police to suspend liquor licences for up to 24 hours.
“The Brumby Labor Government has put record numbers of police on the beat and there are more on the way. When Ted Baillieu was president of the former Liberal Government his party promised an extra 1000 police but actually slashed 800 from the force, a huge failure on law and order,” Mr Cameron said.