1 March, 2023
Government introduces safety reforms across Downs region
Under pressure to find quick solutions to social problems in the region, the State Government has announced it will introduce new high-visibility police in Toowoomba and patrol hot spots on the wider Darling Downs.
As part of the changes, the State Flying Squad will be expanded and given a youth justice focus to tackle youth crime hot spots whenever and wherever they emerge.
A trial of electronic monitoring devices in Brisbane will also be expanded to include Toowoomba, and being expanded to apply young offenders 15 years and older.
The Youth Co-Responder Teams initiative, where police and youth justice workers patrol the streets and engage with young people, will also be expanded to Toowoomba.
The Co-Responder program works to reduce youth crime and improve community safety by engaging with at-risk youth and young people on court orders at all hours of the day.
The teams undertake various activities including de-escalating and problem solving where groups congregate, transporting youth to safety, connecting with families and support agencies and exploring diversionary pathways.
On a visit to Toowoomba, the Premier, Annastacia Palaszczuk announced that an intensive bail supervision program from Brisbane will be expanded to Toowoomba.
This supervision program aims to enable police to help young people comply with their bail conditions and keep them from returning to custody, reducing demand on watchhouses and Youth Justice Detention Centres.
As part of this initiative, police will undertake proactive strategies including home bail compliance checks, proactive youth engagement and patrols of known hot spots to improve bail compliance and minimise re-offending of young people on bail.
Premier Palaszczuk said her Government had listened to the people of Toowoomba and the Downs and were taking action.
“Community safety is always my government’s priority,” she said.
“People in Toowoomba will see more police, more often, out in the streets patrolling shopping centres and other areas where people gather, and we have introduced breach of bail legislation that is real and will work.
“These reforms allow a greater response to tackling youth crime and its complex causes to help break the cycle of offending for the future, while keeping Queenslanders safe.
“I make no apology for going hard on the serious repeat offenders who cause harm in the community, because we hear you and we are taking action.”
Police Minister Mark Ryan said the Government would give police with the support they needed.
“We are providing police with additional resources and the laws they need to target those who wish to do harm to the community.
Mr Ryan said he was confident the increased visibility of the police force would reduce crime.
“We are providing additional funding to police so that “Extreme High-Visibility Police Patrols” will become a permanent feature of policing in Toowoomba,” he said.
“More boots on the ground more often and we know that results in increased disruption and prevention of wrong-doing.”
