Police given powers to wand students for edged weapons

School-based security will soon be eerily similar to that of an airport as NT police are given the green light to wand students of interest.

Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro at the official Opening and First Meeting of the 15th Legislative Assembly of the Northern Territory.' Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

School-based security will soon be eerily similar to that of an airport as NT police are given the green light to wand students of interest.

Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro is set to target classrooms as part of her efforts to tackle crime in the Northern Territory.

Ms Finocchiaro did not confirm if the new police powers would be limited to high schools or would affect primary and middle schools as well.

She said the wanding would only take place at a principal’s discretion.

It comes after 56 incidents involving edged weapons were reported in NT schools across the past financial year.

Teachers were assaulted 335 times last financial year, compared to just 19 times in the previous reporting period.

“Our message is clear: weapons have no place at school,” Ms Finocchiaro said.

“We know there are too many knives and similar weapons in the hands of the wrong people and we want young people to feel and be safe when they are at school.

“Knives are a big problem outside the school gate – we don’t want them coming through the gate.”

But Police Commissioner Michael Murphy said not every edged weapon offence in schools involved enrolled students.

Darwin High School principal Jill Hazeldine said she hoped the CLP’s new legislation – including Declan’s Law – would keep weapons out of her school.

“As a principal, one of my priorities is student and staff safety and the proposed changes provide additional tools to support that,” she said.