I!Jrwnlnttur 1\Nnrmhly December, 1971
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766 Potato Growers Bill [ASSEMBLY] Questions without Notice POTATO GROWERS LICENSING yesterday? Is it a fact that, because of this (AMENDMENT) BILL new method of recording crime statistics, it FIRST READING is possible for the Government to have almost month by month up-to-date statistics Bill received from the Legislative of the present trends in the incidence of Assembly and, on motions by the Hon. crime and its clear.JUp rate? What action J. B. M. Fuller, read a first time and ordered does the Government propose to take on to be printed. the :figures disclosed in the report that was tabled by the Premier yesterday-having SPECIAL ADJOURNMENT in mind that the :figures have been known Motion (by the Hon. J. B. M. Fuller) to the Premier and the Government for agreed to: almost twelve months-to improve the rate That this House, at its rising today, do at which crimes are solved and to reduce adjourn until Tuesday, 26th September, 1972. the number of crimes committed in New House adjourned, on motion by the South Wales, particularly crimes such as Hon. J. B. M. Fuller, at 5.54 p.m. armed holdups, in which there has been an increase of 61 per cent? Sir ROBERT ASKIN: It is true that the report covered the period up to 31st i!Jrwnlnttur 1\nnrmhly December, 1971. It is true, also, that there Thursday, 7 September, 1972 is a new, modem method of computing crime. It is true to say that from now on the only way to make .a comparison, to see Questions without Notice-Procedure on Urgency Government Guarantees (Amendment) Bill (third what crimes are increasing or decreasing, reading)-S'nowy Mountains Engineering Corpora· and what the clear-up mte is, will be to tion (N.S.W.) Bill (third reading)-Western Lands (Amendment) Bill (third reading)-Potato Growers compare one set of computer :figures Licensing (Amendment) Bill (third reading) Stock Diseases (Amendment) Bill (second reading) with the previous set of computer -Swine Compensation (Amendment) Bill (second figures. No guide at all would be obtained reading)-Medical Practitioners (Amendment) Bill (second reading)-Printing Committee (Third Re if computer :figures were compared with port)-Adjournment (Philosophy Department, Uni :figures obtained under the old system. versity of Sydney)-Printed Questions and Answers. When I received the report mentioned by the Leader of the Opposition, I naturally Mr SPEAKER (THE HoN. SIR KEVIN had a talk with the Deputy Commissioner ELLIS) took the chair at 11 a.m. of Police and discussed a number of aspects of it. Mr SPEAKER offered the Prayer. Mr MAL LAM: Is the Premier going to QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE apologize to Mr Arantz? CRIME STATISTICS Sir ROBERT ASKIN: Mr Arantz was dealt with by a court, which decided that Mr HILLS: I ask the Premier and his dismissal from the service should be up Treasurer whether the annual report of the held. If the honourable member wishes to Commissioner of Police which was tabled quarrel with the decision of a cour·t headed by the Premier yesterday is complete to by a judge with the status of a Supreme December, 1971, and is based on a new Court justice, that is ·a matter for him; but method of computing crime statistics and I do not propose to do it. the clear-up rate of crime. Is it a fact that the figures disclosed substantiate the allega Mr MALLAM: Was the information right? tions or reports that were made by former Sir ROBERT ASKIN: I do not think it Detective-Sergeant Arantz in November las·t year, a:nd indicate clearly that the was a question whether the information Government and the public have been Detective-Sergeant Arantz gave was right aware for almost twelve months of the or wrong; it was a question of the propriety trends that were disclosed in the report of giving out such information without the Questions without Notice (7 SEPT., 1972] Questions without Notice 767 authority of his senior officer. That is what The salaries and working conditions of he was dismissed for doing. I do not <think the police in New South Wales, at the time that we should pursue any questions ,about their last award was settled, made them Mr Arantz, for we know, or should know, just about the best of any State in Australia. what is happening: there is a case pending Since that time somebody else may have before the court involving Mr Arantz and moved again, but it is the Government's I do not think that we should say anything intention, so far as it is within our ambit, in this House about the ma:tter because that to make sure that the New South Wales might interfere with the proper hearing of police are treated as well as, if not better the matter by the court. than, their counterparts in other States. We are doing this in every way we can It should be pointed out that in the preamble to the annual report of the Police by increasing the vote for the police, and by providing more vehicles, more techni Department~and the Deputy Commis sioner of Police pointed this out to me cal equipment and more scientific equip it is made clear that all sorts of minor ment. We are sending more police officers crimes as well as serious ones are included abroad, particularly promising ones, to in the computer statistics. Formerly statis study the latest methods of crime detec tion, of dealing with drugs, and so on. As tics of minor crimes were not recorded. Now if somebody loses a fountain pen or a government we are doing our best in this has a garden spade taken-and this was an regard and I am satisfied that the Commis sioner of Police and the Deputy Commis actual case-that fact is fed into the com sioner of Police are anxious to achieve the puter, though it was not recorded formerly same ends. under this Government or under any pre vious government. The police certainly do Mr SPEAKER: Order! Conversation must their best to clear up these minor matters, cease, gentlemen. but such crimes were not recorded pre viously in the official statistics presented to flnterruptien] Parliament. Now practically everything is Mr SPEAKER: Order! I call the honour fed into the computer and the result is that able member for Dubbo to order. the figures have gone up substantially. [Interruption] The best thing to do is to wait until we get the report next year and see whether the Mr SPEAKER: Order! I call the honour new figures show a substantial decline on able member for Corrimal to order. this year's figures. The Deputy Commis Sir ROBERT ASKIN: Without having sioner of Police and the police force are the particulars available to me, I believe devoting themselves to that achievement. that what the Leader of the Opposition The Government has tried to help the police has said is true up to a point, but there force in every way it can. We as a govern are some technical problems associated with ment and as members of Parliament cannot the computer, which we are trying to clear up crime ourselves. What we can do straighten out in conjunction with the is try to help the police by giving them Deputy Commissioner of Police. Honour as many men of the right type as can be able members may rest assured that I, as recruited, ,and we have been doing that MiniSiter responsible for the police force, 'all along. A recruiting campaign is still will be in constant touch with the Deputy under way. The Government has put on a Commissioner of Police to try to bring about large number of extra policemen. It has and to help in devising ways and means of increased substantially the size of the police reducing the crime rate, as far as the Gov force since it came to office. The rate of ernment is able to do so. This is what every increase in the police force transcends the body wants to see happen, and I can assure rate of increase in the population, and the the House ,that the Government is just as Government Wlllllts to put on many more anxious as the Leader of the Opposition men. The Government is trying to recruit and everybody else to see the crime rate them. come down. I emphasize in conclusion that 768 Questions without Notice [ASSEMBLY] Questions without Notice the proper approach to assessing whether been some dispute whether the responsibility the crime rate is increasing, and to deter lies with the Maritime Services Board or mining the clear-up rate, is to compare the Commonwealth Department of Shipping computer figures with other computer and Transport to remove these wrecks, par figures, and not to compare the results ob ticularly in view of the fact that the owner tained from the computer with figures pro has recently been declared bankrupt? Will duced by the old method, which did not the Premier and Treasurer give an assur involve the computer method used now. ance that he will endeavour to sheet home the responsibility and have the appropriate BUSINESS PAPER department act as soon as possible so that these unsightly wrecks can be removed from Mr CHAFFEY: On a point of order. You this fine area? will recall, Mr Speaker, that yesterday, having tried to speak on privilege, I gave Sir ROBERT ASKIN: I appreciate the notice of a motion. I should like to ascer honourable gentleman's concern.