Former top cop and mayoral candidate Paul Taylor blasts ‘M.I.A’ council

A former top cop and mayoral candidate has blasted Cairns Regional Council after it was missing in action from a public hearing on youth justice reform on Wednesday.

Youth Justice Reform Select Committee in Cairns, February 7, 2024.

A former top cop and mayoral candidate has blasted Cairns Regional Council after it was missing in action from a public hearing on youth justice reform.

On Wednesday the Queensland parliament Youth Justice Reform Committee was in Cairns hearing from front line workers, advocacy groups, and victims of crime, who presented their evidence in the hopes of getting action on youth crime.

Paul Taylor, a former Queensland Police Service deputy commissioner, spoke from the floor during the hearing providing his insights into the complex issue and later called out the absence of council representatives.

“Having a voice at the table in the inquiry into youth justice reform in Queensland should be

at the top of the agenda for the governing body of Cairns, a place where we have seen youth

crime alarmingly rise in the recent past,” Mr Taylor said.

Former Deputy Police Commissioner for Regional Queensland Paul Taylor. Picture: Brendan Radke

“Neither our current Mayor, Cr Eden, nor any other representative from the CRC was anywhere to be seen.”

Speaking at the hearing, Mr Taylor admitted that police could not arrest their way out of the current situation, but some offenders needed to be in custody.

“Moving kids around in detention, all you are doing is congregating a group that learn and share with each other,” he said.

“However, some of these people just need to be in custody to keep the community safe, when you have kids out of their minds and racing cars at 150-160kmph down the road,” he said.

“And for some spending $1m on trying to rehabilitate those individuals will not change anything one iota.”

Mr Taylor also said there needed to be a better way to assess the value of programs, and detention as a last resort needed to be taken away, as it limits magistrates.

Mr Taylor served with Queensland Police for 45 years including a stint as the Northern Region’s Assistant Commissioner from 2015 to 2020, where he co-ordinated major policing operations that targeted young and adult offenders and resulted in hundreds of arrests.

“I am serious about reducing crime rates in Cairns and this is why I had my say with the

reform committee,” he said.

“We have announced already the formation of a crime advisory committee once in office.

“I completed a submission, along with the Mayors of Mareeba and Townsville; two Mayors who understand the importance of representing their constituents.”

Cairns’ mayor Terry James said he did not make a submission to the forum because he was not aware the forum was in town.

Cairns Regional Council acting mayor Terry James has been voted in as Cairns Mayor by 5 votes to 4 in an ordinary council meeting, after former Cairns Mayor Bob Manning stood down from the position. Picture: Brendan Radke

“I don’t know why the invitation did not come to me. I didn’t know it was on,” Mr James said.

Mr James said he was unsure if the council was informed of the forum.

“Not that I’m aware of. I was going to take it up today with the CEO,” he said.

In March 2023, former Cairns mayor Bob Manning admitted to not reading relevant legislation during a public hearing into the state government’s Strengthening Community Safety Bill.

When asked if two mayors in a row had failed to make adequate representations at state government forums regarding the problem of youth crime in Cairns, Mr James responded: “If I had known about it, I would have been there.”

A Cairns Regional Council spokesperson said, “Cairns Regional Council did not receive an invite to Wednesday’s Youth Justice Reform Select Committee public hearing.”

When asked if they were aware of the public and open to attend hearing the council repeated the line that they were not invited.

Originally published as Former top cop and mayoral candidate Paul Taylor blasts ‘M.I.A’ council