Mayors from Townsville, Cairns and Mount Isa want banned drinkers register for state’s north

Mayors in Queensland’s crime-hit north are calling for NT-style liquor restrictions to be introduced to curb alcohol-fuelled crime in their cities.

Mayors in Queensland’s crime-hit north are calling for Northern Territory-style liquor restrictions to be introduced to curb alcohol-fuelled crime in their cities.

The state’s north has been grappling with a wave of property crime and anti-social behaviour.

In a joint letter, Townsville mayor Jenny Hill, Cairns mayor Bob Manning and Mount Isa mayor Danielle Slade wrote to Deputy Premier Steven Miles asking him to implement a banned drinkers register (BDR) in the state’s northern region in a bid to curb crime.

They argued unrestricted sales of takeaway liquor have been fuelling crime and anti-social behaviour in their local government areas.

It comes after the NT recently brought back new laws restricting alcohol to tackle grog-fuelled violence in communities such as Alice Springs.

Western Australia is also looking to overhaul its banned drinkers register to address similar issues in the Kimberley and Pilbara region.

Cairns mayor Bob Manning, Townsville mayor Jenny Hill and Mount Isa mayor Danielle Slade have sent a joint letter to Deputy Premier Steven Miles regarding crime.

Townsville Mayor Jenny Hill said mayors across northern Queensland – in Mackay, Townsville, Cairns and Mount Isa – had been pushing for the government to act.

“We’ve felt that no one was listening to us individually, but maybe they’d listen to us as a group,” she said.

Mount Isa. Picture: Dew Annette

“The issue in Cairns, it’s been quite serious … for a long time.

“(It) probably is, in some ways, worse than Townsville.

“And we’ve seen in Mount Isa, some real problems, and sadly, some of those problems then shifted either to Townsville or Cairns.”

She said even though the mayors had no control over youth crime legislation or management, it was their job to represent the community and make sure their voices were heard.

View from Castle Hill. Picture: Evan Morgan

Cr Hill said people moving to Mount Isa from NT because they could not drink.

“They come across the border and create havoc in Mount Isa and then move to places like Cairns and Townsville when they get moved along,” she said.

“There is not enough effective services in the regions.”

Cr Hill said the BDR had been effective enough in the NT that people were leaving the state to come to Queensland.

Cairns. Picture: Stewart McLean

She said alcohol management plans had also been implemented in the northern parts of Western Australia.

“We need to do the same thing, otherwise all you’re doing is shifting the problem,” Cr Hill said.

A Palaszczuk government spokesman said they welcomed the mayors’ feedback in the wake of the tough new laws they recently announced to tackle crime.

“The committee taking feedback has left public consultation on the measures we’ve introduced open until midday Friday (March 24) and I welcome anyone to submit their feedback,” he said.

The mayors have also called on the state government to do more to address chroming, a deadly form of substance abuse involving the inhaling of solvents such as deodorants.

They want the Youth Empowered Towards Independence (YETI) program — which is helping combat inhalant abuse in Cairns — to be expanded in Townsville and Mount Isa as well.

The mayors also highlighted concerns about service providers contracted by the Department of Children, Youth Justice, and Multicultural Affairs (DCYJMA) to support people leaving youth detention.

“It is evident to many in the community that very few, if any, of these service providers are having any success in rehabilitating and reintegrating offenders into the community,” the letter read.

“There is a strong view that many of these organisations profit off failure, and there is little oversight of their effectiveness.

“They fail to demonstrate any deliverables yet keep receiving DCYJMA contracts, and the cycle self-perpetuates.”

They have called for a full audit of DCYJMA contracts to be conducted “as a matter of urgency” and for each organisation operating in Townsville, Cairns, and Mount Isa to be given a show cause notice as to why their funding should not cease.

Cr Hill said some of the youth crime programs just weren’t working and that non-government organisations (NGOs) were coming from all over and had “no idea of what life's really like in North Queensland”.

A Queensland government spokeswoman said the government was committed to tackling causes of crime.

“The new laws announced this week follow careful consideration by the Palaszczuk government and are based on evidence and feedback from the community, police and other stakeholders,” she said.

“On top of that, we’re investing a further $332 million to boost police resources, tackle the complex causes of youth crime and support community safety.

“The government welcomes the mayors’ feedback. The committee taking feedback has left public consultation on the measures we’ve introduced open until midday Friday and I welcome anyone to submit their feedback.

“The laws will undergo the committee process, which includes two weeks of consultation. In that time, committee members will be able to go back to their communities to talk about the reforms and bring their insight back to the committee room.”

Here is the full list of proposal mayors in Townsville, Cairns and Mount Isa are calling on the Queensland Government to consider:

1. It is proposed that the Queensland Government begin work on implementing a BDR in North, Far North and North West Queensland in order to curb criminal and anti-social behaviour fuelled by unrestricted sales of takeaway liquor.

2. Cairns Regional Council and Queensland Police Service are pleased to advise that the Youth Empowered Towards Independence (YETI) program has had great success in Cairns to combat inhalant abuse. In other communities where inhalant abuse is endemic, such as Townsville and Mount Isa, would strongly benefit from the expansion of the YETI program.

3. A full audit of DCYJMA contracts should be conducted as a matter of urgency, and each organisation operating in Townsville, Cairns and Mount Isa should be given a show cause notice as to why their funding should not cease.

4. The Palaszczuk Government would receive the full support of the three Councils if it were to lobby the Federal Government to reinstate NPARIH or a NPARIH-like program. Support of the NT Government would be advantageous as the housing issue is even worse in that jurisdiction, however, many people from the NT seek refuge in Queensland cities and contribute to anti-social behaviours and exacerbate housing shortages in Cairns, Mount Isa, and Townsville.

5. Funding should be made available for councils to conduct community safety audits, as well as capital funding allocated to help make public spaces have greater amenity at all hours.

6. The Queensland Government should provide assistance to local governments suffering from high rates of vehicle theft to safeguard public assets from misuse of vehicles.

Originally published as Mayors from Townsville, Cairns and Mount Isa want banned drinkers register for state’s north