News

Police | April 18, 2016

Kealy - Funding needed for police station redevelopments

The Nationals Member for Lowan, Emma Kealy MP has congratulated the Yarriambiack police community for successfully securing funding to build a new police station at Murtoa.

This announcement has followed a call in Parliament by Emma Kealy MP last month for the State Government to detail their plans to redevelop police stations across the Lowan electorate, including Murtoa, Warracknabeal and Hamilton.

“The Murtoa police station includes demountable buildings with limited space and ongoing sewerage issues, presenting a significant occupational health and safety risk,” Ms Kealy said.

“While this is fabulous news that the Murtoa Police Station will be rebuilt, the Warracknabeal and Hamilton stations still need vital funding to replace their outdated facilities and I call on the Government to urgently release funds”, she said.

At a recent community meeting convened by police in Minyip, local police highlighted the dire need for funding to upgrade the Murtoa and Warracknabeal stations.

“The Warracknabeal station has extremely limited space and a poor layout, which places great pressure on local police to manage workflow and operate efficiently,” Ms Kealy said

“The Hamilton police station is also in dire need of renovation, with the current building significantly restricting the ability of police to manage the demands of their interactions with the community. The Hamilton holding cells are in an unacceptable condition to hold suspects under arrest for more than a few hours.

“Our hardworking police officers do an outstanding job with extremely limited resources and are doing their utmost to protect our people, uphold the law and ensure safe communities.

“It is essential that the government provide suitable premises to support our police to do the best job they possibly can.

“Regional Victoria faces a greater challenge to recruit and retain police. It is essential that our county stations and officers be provided with quality facilities,” she said.