Neville praises police for drop in local crime rate

LABOR says strong local policing and crime prevention programs are behind a drop in crime across Geelong and the Bellarine.

Minister for Police and Emergency Services and Bellarine MP Lisa Neville last month thanked local police for their efforts following the release of the latest figures from the Crime Statistics Agency.

The crime rate in the City of Greater Geelong fell 7.9 per cent in the year to September 30 2018, falling to its lowest level since 2014. The crime rate in the Surf Coast Shire has also decreased by 10 percent in that same period.

In the Borough of Queenscliffe, the crime rate increased by 103.8 per cent. This was principally driven by one person committing a string of deception offences at a local medical centre which accounted for approximately 70 per cent of these
offences, which is why the criminal incident rate for Queenscliff fell by 29.3 per cent for this same period.

Other key statistics in the region include: In Geelong, the rate of burglary/break and enter offences are down 30 per cent, with the lowest number of these offences recorded in 10 years In the Surf Coast, there has been a 29.5 per cent decrease in the rate of theft offences, again the lowest number of offences recorded in this category in 10 years, and the trend across the region continues in the Borough of Queenscliffe, with the rate of burglary/break and enter offences decreasing by 60 percent.

Over the past four years, 53 new police and 24 new PCOs were allocated to the Geelong area in what Labor says is the biggest boost to policing in Geelong’s history.

Since July 2015, Labor has provided more than $1.4 million in funding under the Community Crime Prevention program for 28 projects to improve community safety in Geelong.

“These statistics confirm that when you invest in new police officers, capability and technology, our community sees results,” Ms Neville said.

Statewide, there was a 3.9 per cent drop in the crime rate and a 1.6 per cent decrease in recorded offences.