Stuart Henry (Hasluck, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Today I would like to recognise the outstanding contribution of a resident of my electorate of Hasluck, Mr John Kellock of Walliston. John is the Suburb Manager for the Walliston Neighbourhood Watch. At a short ceremony conducted at the Kalamunda Police Station recently, John received recognition and thanks for his efforts. Inspector Paul Zegir, from the East Metropolitan Police District, presented John with a certificate acknowledging his commitment to community safety, naming John the Neighbourhood Watch Neighbour of the Month.

Mr Kellock was awarded this accolade for his initiatives to make his street and his suburb a safer and more secure place to live. I have an ongoing interest in the security and welfare of all the residents in my electorate of Hasluck, and I would like to thank John for being so proactive.

Crime is a constant concern for many residents in Hasluck. While the Western Australian police do a fine job, they simply do not have the resources to keep up with the level of crime in our suburbs. Often, petty crimes, such as graffiti, minor property damage and hooliganism, are not dealt with due to constraints on police time and resources.

Neighbourhood Watch, and people like John Kellock, provide us with a great service, by working to prevent crime and providing information to police. Local solutions to local crime have long been accepted as a vital part of any crime prevention strategy. Neighbourhood Watch is important in identifying crime in our local area and working with police to put in place crime prevention strategies.

The importance of local action in crime prevention has been recognised by the Howard government through the National Community Crime Prevention grants put in place by Senator Chris Ellison, the Minister for Justice and Customs. These grants provide federal funding to local groups and local governments to put in place crime prevention strategies, and they have been a great success.

John and those supporters of his who belong to the Neighbourhood Watch group in the electorate of Hasluck, particularly in Walliston, have made a great contribution. I am very pleased that his role has been acknowledged by Neighbourhood Watch and the Western Australian police. I am pleased to acknowledge it again in this place, and to highlight John Kellock’s efforts as an example for all of us to play our part in local crime prevention.