Clare O'Neil (Hotham, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Community safety is one of the core functions of government. It is something Labor believes in very deeply. But I rise today to raise some critical questions about the commitment of the government. During the election, Justice Minister Michael Keenan went around the country with Liberal candidates promising millions of dollars in funding for local community safety projects. He promised $860,000 to the citizens of Cowan, $205,000 to the citizens of Dobell, $225,000 to the citizens of Brand, $100,000 to the citizens of Perth and $635,000 to the citizens of Solomon. Voters went to the polls on election day with those promises in mind.

Since the election, those local communities are being told a very different story. They have received a letter saying that they must now apply for funding. We do not know the criteria that they will have their applications assessed under. Most critically, they have been told that their funding application will now be 'considered as part of the budget process'. I have been around long enough to know what 'considered as part of the budget process' means. The Minister for Justice, Michael Keenan, is clearly trying to weasel out of his commitments. Perhaps he is trying to punish these local communities for electing Labor members of parliament. But these Labor MPs are fighters and they are not going to allow this to happen. The members for Cowan, Dobell, Brand, Perth and Solomon today will be standing up for their constituents in this chamber. (Time expired)