New set of police numbers for Gold Coast as Government defends thin blue line
Police Minister Mark Ryan has released a new set of police numbers for the Gold Coast but the Opposition says he doesn’t have a clue.
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POLICE Minister Mark Ryan is convinced the Gold Coast has 1015 cops — up almost 200 on a figure quoted by Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk in Parliament.
But Mudgeeraba MP and LNP frontbencher Ros Bates says the embattled minister “doesn’t have a clue” and is giving him an ultimatum to front up on the Gold Coast and explain himself.
“If the Police Minister doesn’t come down to the Coast and front up to this issue, then Annastacia Palaszczuk should sack him,” she said yesterday.
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The Bulletin has reported that the Coast district police allocation in June 2016 was 886. That figure dropped to 846 in June last year and decreased again to 841 just six months ago.
The Premier told Parliament this month the number was now 842.
But Mr Ryan, after reports revealed the Coast police budget would be reduced and amounts funnelled to Brisbane, made a ministerial statement in State Parliament yesterday to set the record right.
Commissioner Ian Stewart had advised him it was important to “compare apples with apples” and the correct number was the approved rather than actual strength of police numbers, because the actual number could change on a daily basis.
“The critical number is the approved strength, that is, the number of police set by the commissioner for each policing region. The other number is the actual strength, which is an actual headcount of police officers in a particular region on a particular day,” he said.
“The number that matters, the approved strength, has gone up in all regions across the state.”
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Mr Ryan said the Gold Coast’s approved strength in 2014 including division, district and central functions, was 966 police officers.
“In 2018, for the Gold Coast the approved strength is 1015. By way of interest, as at 30 September 2018 on the Gold Coast, the actual strength is 1054, which is an increase from 2016.”
However, police sources said the best guide was actual numbers, explaining that a station like Runaway Bay could have 28 approved police but only 14 would be on the ground due to sick leave and transfers.
“Your best example of approved versus actual, based on the minister’s thoughts, is Chief Superintendent Marty Mickelson,” the police source said.
“He is the most senior Coast officer, he’s not been on the Coast for two months, and under ‘approved’ he is counted.
“It’s ridiculous. Actual police solve crime. Actual police protect people from being bashed. A figure (like approved) of a person off for six months, it won’t help anyone.”
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Ms Bates said her Mudgeeraba electorate needed more police to deal with increased hooning, youth gangs and domestic violence incidents that she said were at record levels.
“I also know that the Nerang station is well short of the officers they need,” she said.
“Yet again we see a different set of police numbers for the Gold Coast. It’s obvious the embattled Police Minister, Mark Ryan, doesn’t have a clue.
“Maybe the minister needs a map to find out where the Gold Coast is.”
Queensland Police Union president Ian Leavers said police numbers should be in plainspeak, to stop muddying of the waters.
“The Police Union has long advocated for putting police numbers in ‘plainspeak’ by simply having a minimum staffing model for every police establishment in Queensland,” Mr Leavers said.
“That way, if every police station, division, and establishment had a minimum staffing component this would take police numbers away from being a political football and actually give the community confidence that there were always enough police to attend to the ever increasing calls for service.
“We also need to move toward having ‘full-time equivalents’ in police numbers across Queensland too.”
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