20 New Police Officers Needed In Alice Springs

To support the immediate posting of 20 additional police officers to Alice Springs, the Territory Opposition has released figures comparing the number of recorded assaults in Darwin and Alice Springs.

"Not only has the rate of assault increased sharply in Alice Springs but we have actually overtaken Darwin in the number of assaults committed,” says Jodeen Carney, Leader of the Opposition.

"Alice Springs has become the assault capital of the Territory.”

The Martin Government's quarterly crime statistics show that in the two years to the March 2007 quarter, there were 2155 recorded assaults in Alice Springs and 2139 in Darwin.

By way of comparison in the 2 year period before that, there were 1611 recorded assaults in Alice Springs and 2000 in Darwin.

"Darwin has about 70,000 people living in it, Alice Springs approximately 27,000, yet Alice actually recorded 16 more assaults in the last two years,” says Ms Carney.

"The fact is, residents of Alice Springs are more than twice as likely to be assaulted as people living in Darwin, yet the Martin Government still refuses to increase police establishment numbers in Alice Springs.

"Comparing Palmerston and Alice Springs is no better – Palmerston has some 32,000 residents, yet recorded just 468 assaults in the last two years.

"Putting the raw figures aside, the issue is one of a reasonable expectation of safety for the people of Alice Springs.

"The fact is that having enough police on the beat is essential to lowering the level of assault in Alice Springs.

"When the people of Alice Springs are twice as likely to be assaulted as the people of Darwin – there can't be enough police on the streets of Alice Springs.

"20 additional police will make a difference – the question is will Clare Martin send them to Alice? "

2007-07-23