Productivity Commission Report

The Hon. G.A. KANDELAARS (15:22): My question is to the Minister for Police. Can the minister inform the council as to how the South Australian government ranked in the recent Productivity Commission's report on government services?

The Hon. P. MALINAUSKAS (Minister for Police, Minister for Correctional Services, Minister for Emergency Services, Minister for Road Safety) (15:22): I thank the Hon. Mr Kandelaars for his important question, and I also acknowledge his outstanding service to this chamber for a number of years and thank him for an important question. It is an important question, because I think the professionalism of our police force is fundamental in maintaining community confidence in what is an incredibly important service to the South Australian community.

It gives me great pride to be able to report that South Australia Police were regarded as the most professional police force in the nation, with new figures showing that 91.2 per cent of South Australians believe that police perform professionally—three percentage points higher than the national average. These statistics come from none other than the Productivity Commission. The Productivity Commission, of course, is quite separate and distinct, at arm's length from the state government, so these are robust, independent statistics that I am sure everyone in this chamber would applaud.

Ninety point four per cent of people reported feeling safe home alone at night, placing South Australia second in the nation, up from fifth the year prior and above the national average of 88.5 per cent. Again, South Australia has the highest number of operational police officers of all states per capita at 333 per 100,000 people. This is an incredible statistic. We have the highest number of operational police per capita compared with every other state in the country.

That statistic stands alone, independently tested by the Productivity Commission, and speaks to the fact that this government is genuinely committed to making sure we have police officers working on the front line, keeping the community safe, and it is delivering a dividend. This is a proud Labor government investment. Of course, we know that we are not resting on our laurels, hence the government's investment in the Recruit 313 effort, which is very much on track to be achieved by the middle of next year.

A visible police presence is undoubtedly contributing to South Australians feeling safe, a metric that I hope will only continue to grow as we see the police academy full of cadets as we set to honour our commitment to having the extra 313 police officers protecting South Australians. I am sure that this is no coincidence, with Labor having a long and proud history of supporting our state's police. It is a record that stands in stark contrast to those opposite who were around many moons ago when they occupied the Treasury benches.

Not only have we seen an increase in the police budget in every year of the Labor government, not only have we seen an increase in the number of officers on the front line, but those officers will also be equipped with better than ever before tools and technology needed by a 21^st century police force. The results in the Report on Government Services speak to the level of commitment and professionalism with which the police conduct themselves. The support and investment provided by this government over the past 15 years is paying dividends and the community can have confidence in their police keeping them safe.

The men and women of SAPOL should be proud and be acknowledged for their professionalism and all the fine work they do to make this community as safe as it is. I continue to be regularly impressed when I have the opportunity to talk to those men and women who serve our community, and I look forward to being part of a government that continues to back them up by putting our money where our mouth is, putting in resources to ensure that they are able to do the job as best they possibly can.