THE KATTER’S Australian Party launched our policy on crime last week. The epidemic of juvenile crime raging throughout our region is of serious concern to the whole community. My office receives numerous calls asking for help.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
We need a new approach in tackling this endemic problem. While major party politicians love to talk about locking people up and throwing away the key, they rarely address the issue of what kind of people do we want coming out the other end. Adult prisons are often referred to as being a ‘masterclass for criminals’ and it’s clear that current policies are just not working. We see time and time again that current sentencing laws and the threat of being locked up does not act as a deterrent.
Our policy is centred around “Relocation Sentencing”; giving magistrates the power to effectively banish offenders from the community where they committed their crimes.
Our program would act as a circuit breaker to remove these children from negative influences, so they can rebuild their confidence and learn new skills with the view to steering them away from a life of crime.
Young offenders would be sent to an approved, remote property where they can work on the land, learn some new skills, rather than pouring fuel on the fire by locking them up with hardened criminals.
To help ensure that we get allocated the resources we need to help combat this problem, it’s important that all crimes are reported to police. You can call PoliceLink on 131 444 or anonymously call CrimeStoppers on 1800 333 000. Of course, please dial 000 in an emergency.
On a more pleasant note, the C-150 celebrations in Cloncurry have been a display of rural mateship and country town hospitality at its best.
For the parade, I dressed up as my great uncle Bert Katter, one of the many characters that make up the Curry’s colourful history. I was lucky enough to have his original bookie’s bag, which was a hit with many of the older residents who remember him well.
The entire community got behind the parade which was so big, we filled up the full circuit of the route. Local community groups such as the Queensland Country Women’s Association, local schools like St Joseph’s along with the police, fire brigades, health services and longstanding local business houses like the Bakhash family and Cloncurry 4x4 all tried to outdo each other with their colourful and imaginative floats.
The Cloncurry Eagles put on a devastating display when they took on the Normanton Stingers on Saturday with the Eagles running out winners 52-4. Full credit to the Stingers who travelled 4 and a half hours down the highway to take part in the celebrations.
I attended the Queensland Ambulance Service’s annual Remembrance Day service at the Good Shepherd Parish Catholic Church on September 14. Thankfully, no new names have been added to their honour roll this year.
After the service, two of our local officers received long service medals. Cloncurry’s Officer in Charge Craig Hansen was recognised for his ten years of service while Acting Clinical Support Officer Melissa Cheshire received her medal for 25 years of dedicated service to the community. Thank you to all the hard working ambos in our region.
Speaking of emergency services, the annual National Police Remembrance Day service will be held on Friday September 29 at the Good Shepherd Parish starting at 10am. I would encourage you to come along and attend this important day. Please make the time to show your support for our local police officers who put their lives on the line in service to our community.
