Sam Lim (Tangney, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The WA Police Force has the highest police suicide rate among the mainland states. Suicide and mental health for both serving and retired police officers is a major issue. I served in the WA Police Force for almost 16 years. I had four surgeries because of that job. When I drive around my electorate of Tangney, not only do I remember but I can still smell the dead bodies I picked up.

I have many friends who are still serving in the WA Police Force and who want to quit the WA Police Force. They have had enough. Three hundred and fifty-four WA Police Force officers resigned in 2023-24. Many police brothers and sisters tell me about how they are suffering. They feel no-one cares. Our rank and file officers do not feel supported. No-one is listening to them. Their calls are becoming more frequent, more desperate and more worrying. While they are the first to answer a call for help, they feel abandoned and ignored. Being a police officer was my childhood dream. But, if we want it to continue to be the childhood dream of our future generations, we need to act now.