Victorians deserve to feel safe – at work, in the community, and in their homes.
But under Labor, this is sadly becoming increasingly uncommon.
New crime statistics show crime has increased 23 per cent across Victoria since Jacinta Allan became Premier almost three years ago.
In Northern Grampians and Ararat local government areas alone, retail store thefts have more than doubled in the 12 months to March this year, while the number of serious assaults and alleged youth offences have also increased.
In Northern Grampians, the total number of criminal incidents in the same period increased by almost 37 per cent from the previous 12 months.
We cannot keep our state on this path.
Our local police do a fabulous job, but they are stretched too thin, with the force short more than 1500 officers across the state.
I consistently hear from residents that they no longer feel safe in their communities and in their homes.
Everybody knows somebody who has been violated through crime, and that is not the Victoria we used to know.
Our communities deserve better than what we’re getting under Labor, which is why the Nationals and Liberals have a comprehensive plan to end Labor’s crime crisis and keep Victorians safe.
We will:
- Recruit 3000 additional Victoria Police officers
- Reopen the more than 40 closed or reduced hours police stations, including in Stawell, which had its station hours reduced again earlier this year, from 16 hours a day to eight hours a day
- Implement stronger Adult Crime, Adult Time laws, to expand sentencing provisions to over a broader range of serious youth offences
- Invest in early prevention and rehabilitation initiatives to keep at-risk youth out of a life of crime
- Introduce a tough new one-strike bail rule for serious offences
It’s clear that Labor’s weak crime laws are failing victims and communities.
Victorians deserve a government that backs police, puts victims first and takes crime seriously, and that’s exactly what a Nationals and Liberals government will deliver.
We will back our police, strengthen the justice system and introduce tough new measures to both prevent and punish crime.
Only the Nationals and Liberals have a plan to stop the waste and end the corruption so we can bring crime rates down and keep you and your community safe.