Andrew Willcox (Dawson, Liberal National Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise today to speak on the motion put forward by the honourable member for McPherson, and I thank her for giving me the opportunity to highlight the importance of our national Police Week, which was last week from 17 to 29 September. The week is a reminder to all Australians to acknowledge the work and dedication of the brave men and women in the police force. These courageous officers should hold their heads high for the way they respond to their challenging and often dangerous roles. Their services require them to be prepared for all things, both physically and mentally. We should do everything we can to support their mental health. While I can only speak on behalf of my electorate of Dawson, I hope that we will all stop and give thanks for the police women and men across the nation, as theirs can often be a thankless job.

It is the police who run towards an act of violence when we run the other way. It is the police who deal in situations with an unknown factor every day. It is the police who, more often than not, are the first on the scene of accidents and witness people dying in front of them, and it is the police who are the ones to deliver the horrible news to a family of the death of loved ones and watch those families deal with the immediate grief. I also believe it is important that we should thank all the families of the officers for their support and the sacrifice that they make.

It is also National Police Remembrance Day this Thursday 29 September. This day gives everyone the opportunity to remember and honour those officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty to keep us safe. When we go to sleep at night, there are thousands of officers around the country patrolling the streets, often through places we would not dare to tread.

During my time as Mayor of the Whitsunday Regional Council, I was fortunate to develop strong relationships with the local police in my region, and I would like to mention a couple in this place: Senior Sergeant Craig Shepherd and Sergeant Craig McConnell of Bowen police; Nathan Blain of Whitsunday police; Mark Flynn of Proserpine police; and the Superintendent of the whole region, Mr Glenn Morris. There were moments when I would call upon these fine gentlemen and ask for advice, and they would give me frank and fearless advice. I could always trust the information that I received.

During my time, the Whitsunday region suffered through and was decimated by one of the largest and most fierce cyclones in Australian history, Tropical Cyclone Debbie. Having open and clear lines of communication with the police and their leaders across the region in the lead-up to, the course of and the aftermath of this horrific event, I believe, is what helped keep my region safe. It is not every day that you ask how many body bags are in stock or instruct people to leave their homes in order to keep them out of harm's way, preparing for the worst and praying for the best.

Up my way now, we have a different kind of disaster ripping through our communities, only this time it is not a weather event. Young criminals are destroying our once-peaceful way of life. In the beautiful city of Townsville and across the Dawson region, squads of kids, some as young as nine and 10, are breaking into our homes and our cars, taking what they can and trashing what they can't. People are scared to walk down their own streets, and the police are frustrated and have had their hands tied for too long. It is important that we give the police any and all resources that they need to do their job properly.

This is what National Police Week is all about: understanding, recognising, thanking and reflecting. Candlelight vigils and Police Remembrance Day ceremonies will be held in my electorate of Dawson and right across our nation. I would encourage all Australians to attend one of these ceremonies where possible, and I urge all members of parliament to show their thanks and gratitude to our police force. To the police men and women: I salute you.

See this speech in context