City protest costing taxpayers $220,000 a week in police wages as total overtime bill hits $3m
The total costs of policing pro-Palestinian protests, which have brought the city to a halt for the past 15 weeks, has reached more than $3m. And it has caused a chain reaction of police shortages, here’s how.
NSW
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Pro Palestinian protests bringing Sydney’s CBD to a grinding halt every Sunday are costing taxpayers $220,000 a week and causing a chain reaction of police shortages across the state.
NSW Police roster 250 officers – who are all paid overtime – to safeguard the weekly protest which draws thousands of people to the city calling for peace in Gaza and the Middle East.
There are growing calls to make protest organisers either contribute to the cost of policing under a “user pays” system, or modify the event and make it a static rally where it remains in one place without marching, meaning less police are needed to oversee it.
Sunday marked the 15th consecutive rally with a police wages bill exceeding $3 million, but protest organisers say they won’t be footing the bill or changing the format, saying “democracy shouldn’t be curtailed because it costs a lot”.
Palestine Action Group Sydney spokesman Damian Ridgwell said holding the event as a static march was not an option.
“We won’t be staying still or stopping. Part of demonstrating is to disrupt business to be heard,” Mr Ridgwell said.
NSW Police Association president Kevin Morton said the event was placing enormous strain on officers.
“We are already 1500 officers understrength, we’ve got 1,100 off sick and we are still having to come up with 250 (police) to attend these marches every Sunday. It’s ridiculous,” Mr Morton said.
Mr Morton said it was time senior police negotiated with protest organisers to make the event monthly, to combat the strain on resources.
“It’s an international conflict that is dear to the hearts of two different communities, but do we really have to have this protest every Sunday,” he said.
Shadow police spokesman Paul Toole said it was time the NSW Government pushed for a user pays system to combat the cost, citing major events such as the Bathurst 1000 car race where organisers are obliged to pay for the extra police presence.
“At the end of the day, it shouldn’t be a free run every time these protests take place,” Mr Toole said.
“It’s about time we say enough is enough … These protests cost money, they impact on businesses, they close streets – it’s about time we start taking some action back against these continuing protests”.
A spokesman for Police Minister Yasmin Catley queried Mr Toole’s calls for a user pays system, adding: “Our police work hard to provide a safe environment for attendees of public gatherings and the wider community”.
“Is the shadow minister calling for all protests in NSW to be users pays? And if not how does he expect police to distinguish between protests?” he said.
“In any given week there are public gatherings across NSW to which police respond, each with specific operational requirements.
“The priority of police is to provide a safe environment for attendees and the wider community, and they deserve our thanks, not meddling.”
City of Sydney Liberal councillor Shauna Jarrett said the real cost of each protest would be a lot higher once you include the cost to individual businesses.
“It’s scaring people off, it’s disruptive to businesses who have to put on extra security of their own … it’s time they (organisers) started contributing to what this is costing,” Cr Jarrett said.
Retailers Association boss Paul Zahra said CBD it was part and parcel with owning a business in the CBD that there will be events that disrupt trade, but it was about limiting that disruption.
“We want to make sure, as a business community, that there is as little disruption as possible, but it is part of being an operator in the city, there are events that take place such as this,” Mr Zahra said.
A NSW Police spokesman confirmed the cost of running the protest comes from the police budget but would not be drawn on the exact amount.
“The priority of police is to provide a safe environment for attendees and the wider community,” the spokesman said.
A NSW Government spokeswoman added: “The NSW Police have never levied a protest organiser under user pays for costs”.
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