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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
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SOUTH AUSTRALIA POLICE

Mr VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN (Stuart) (11:24): I move:

That this house—

(a) congratulates the South Australian police force for 175 years of service to our state; and

(b) recognises the excellent work of police officers who have served and currently serve our community.

It gives me great pleasure to move this motion, both as the member for Stuart and also as the shadow Minister for Police. The police in our state do excellent work. I will start by working through a few key dates. It is not possible to go through everything that could possibly be relevant to 175 years of history, but I will pick out a few that I think are particularly relevant. The South Australian police force, now renamed South Australia Police (or SAPOL), is unique in the history of Australian police forces in as much as, since its foundation on 28 April 1836, it has been continually centrally administered. This makes it the oldest police organisation in Australia and in Australasia, and one of the oldest established police forces in the world. Members will know that our state was proclaimed in 1836, so very shortly after that.

This happens by Governor Hindmarsh appointing inspector Inman, and asking inspector Inman to go and find 20 officers—10 on foot and 10 mounted—to support him. It was a pleasure to be at the Police Academy on Sunday and see a re-enactment of that, with the minister and many other people. For 120 years the fundamental structure of the South Australia Police was the division between mounted—typically country—and foot—typically metropolitan—police, even though some mounted police were in Adelaide and some foot police were in the country.

In 1838 the first police barracks were built on the north side of North Terrace, behind the present SA Museum. Prior to that, mounted constables, who later became known as troopers, had to be quartered in public houses or private lodgings. The administration of the Northern Territory was taken over by South Australia in 1863. The Northern Territory police were established in 1870, with one inspector and six men. They were part of the South Australia Police, but were managed entirely by an inspector in charge, who was responsible to the minister for the territory.

In 1890 the force was divided into three branches—mounted, foot and detective—and the state was divided into six police divisions: metropolitan, suburban, south-eastern, central, northern and Far North. Police stations had also been established throughout the interior following the telegraph line to Darwin. It is interesting to see that these days South Australia is split up into 12 LSAs—six metro and country/outback—which is not a lot different to what was done back in 1890.

In 1891, 1 Angas Street, Adelaide became the permanent address of the headquarters of the South Australia police department. Again it is interesting to see that today we have a brand new police headquarters just down the road at 100 Angas Street, Adelaide. Very importantly, in 1911 the Police Association was established. It is fair to recognise that the Police Association is a very longstanding—just over 100 years old—organisation representing its members, and I think most people would acknowledge that, as far as organisations which represent police go, it is one of the most successful operating in our state. The South Australia women's police branch came into operation on 1 December 1915, the primary reason being the growing social problem of immorality in the community.

Ms Bedford: And it's all women's fault!

Mr VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: I am not sure what they might think of today's situation—

The SPEAKER: I call the member for Florey to order.

Mr VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: While we know that we live in a very fine state, I am sure the people from 1911 would find extraordinary the lifestyle we lead today.

Ms Bedford interjecting:

Mr VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: The member for Florey might find this particularly interesting: the branch was the first women's police service in the then British empire and the second in the world, following Los Angeles in 1910. Since their inception, South Australian women police have had the same powers of apprehension as male officers. I think that is a credit to the South Australia Police and to our state.

In June 1922, the department purchased two Harley Davidson motorcycles with side cars for the control of traffic and special urgent police cases. These were the first motorised transport for South Australia Police, and in 1923 the first police car (a Hudson Tourer) was purchased. Again, it is fascinating to look at what we do today, with police having cars, boats, four-wheel drives, helicopters, planes and so on. Also, it is interesting to see that bicycles back then were pivotal modes of transport for police, as they are still today.

Ever since 1938, the police have been run as two distinct branches, the foot and the mounted, later to become the metropolitan and the country police. In July 1958, the department amalgamated into one service. In 1961, the former military establishment at historic Fort Largs was acquired by the police and began operating as the police academy. The site was vacated when a new training facility was built adjacent to the former, opened in 2012 as the South Australia Police Academy, where training continues today.

It was a great pleasure to be there on Sunday with the minister and many police officers of all ranks (from cadets all the way through to the commissioner), representatives of emergency services, corrections, justice and the military, and of course many men, women, boys and girls from the public, to see a re-enactment of the history and much of the equipment being used and on display. It was an absolutely fantastic day at the Police Academy.

I would also like to touch on three other key dates. In 1982, we had the first Blue Light Disco; in 1985, Neighbourhood Watch was established; and, in 1966, Crime Stoppers was established. They are very important because they move on to the vital interactive two-way role between police and the community, and it is very important, in my mind, that that relationship is very much a two-way street: neither can do well without the other.

We have come a long way as a society over the last 175 years, and so has SAPOL. Public expectations have changed and two examples are the treatment of Aboriginal people and the treatment of women over the last 175 years, which has changed significantly, just as the roles Aboriginal people and women play in the police force have certainly grown over that time, as they should have. SAPOL's role has changed in line with changed public expectations, but what has not changed is SAPOL's commitment to meet those expectations.

Let me also say that the police are not perfect, neither the organisation nor the individuals, just like the rest of society. Mistakes occur and, very rarely, some things inappropriate are done which could not be classified as mistakes. The police are just the same as everybody else in society—1 per cent of us are angels, 1 per cent of us are devils and the vast majority of the rest of us are in the middle. Police are absolutely no different, just like members of parliament and just like people in any other field of work.

I do occasionally get complaints in my electorate about the police and I do take them seriously, but what is very important is that there are almost always two sides to the story. In the same way as police should not all be lumped together into one category, neither should police lump all members of the public into one category, and I get concerned when I hear reports of categories of people being targeted by police, and I get concerned when I hear reports of individual police officers using the full extent of their powers when less would have been sufficient and probably more useful to all concerned.

However, having said that, we are extremely fortunate in South Australia not only to have the oldest police force in the nation but also to have the most popular, most trusted and most respected police force in the nation, with an 85 per cent public satisfaction rating. I can tell you, Mr Speaker, that is an extraordinary result and something that all South Australians, but particularly SAPOL, deserve to be extremely proud of. I genuinely thank the South Australian police service, sworn and unsworn, cadets through to commissioners, who have served us and serve us today. From the Angas Street headquarters to police stations in Yalata, Marla and Cockburn, doing work from Hindley Street to Innamincka, congratulations on your 175 years and thank you for your work on behalf of our state.

Thankfully, most days police officers do not deal with personally dangerous situations, but every single day they go to work with the full knowledge that they may do so that day. Some days they do take calculated risks with their own personal safety on behalf of the people in their state, and I very genuinely thank them and their families for that. Every single day a police officer goes to work, he or she knows that it might be a day that they have to put their own personal safety (or potentially their own life) at risk on behalf of our community, and that is something that should never, ever be forgotten or taken for granted.

Police officers deserve to have their own safety treated as the highest priority when they are at work. They deserve to have the resources they need to do their job properly. I think it is also very important for them and the community to know that they serve the community. The police do not and should not serve themselves as individuals. The police do not and should not serve SAPOL above the community. They are there to serve the community. They are an asset to the community. We are incredibly fortunate to have them working on behalf of our community, and I again congratulate them and thank them for their 175 years of service to our state.

The Hon. M.F. O'BRIEN (Napier—Minister for Finance, Minister for Police, Minister for Correctional Services, Minister for Emergency Services, Minister for Road Safety) (11:36): In responding to the shadow minister's motion, I would like to congratulate him on the comprehensive suite of history that he has laid before us. I think it was extremely well researched. I will deal predominantly with recent history because what has happened in the last two decades in particular has significant bearing on the future history of the South Australia Police. It is a history that we should be cognisant of going into the next state election.

As many members are aware, in 1994 there was a desperate impasse when the negotiation of the enterprise bargaining agreement for our policewomen and men ran into some difficulty. So unhappy was our police force with its treatment at the hands of the Brown government that it threatened industrial action. For such a dutiful and civic-minded group to contemplate strike action, it is fairly clear the extent of the heavy-handed treatment that was being meted out to them by the then Liberal government.

We probably should also be aware—and I think you would be, Mr Speaker—of the vehement opposition to the police bill that was introduced by the Olsen government. I will refresh the minds of those in the chamber today who are actually unaware of that particular piece of legislation. The bill sought to introduce contract employment for those at or above the senior constable rank; remove the right to appeal over promotion and discipline; and increase the commissioner's powers to dismiss, transfer or demote officers for unsatisfactory performance. Over 2,100 members of the South Australian Police Association signed a petition urging that amendments be made to the bill. The petition was an example of how individuals can actively involve themselves in the political process through their trade union.

Further to the petition, many members contacted their local members of parliament, and the eventual amendments spoke volumes, both about the inadequacy of the bill as well as the determination of the Police Association to have it changed.

Fortunately the current state of affairs for our police is substantially rosier than it was 20 years ago. Not only does South Australia enjoy more police per head of population than any other state or territory, but victim-reported crime has fallen 40 per cent in the past decade. There are 70,000 fewer crimes reported than when the opposition was last in office.

This past Sunday I was present at the public unveiling of the new Police Academy at Taperoo, and I welcomed the presence of several members of the house. As he mentioned in his speech, the shadow minister was present, and I think it was very much appreciated that he was able to attend.

Mr Venning interjecting:

The Hon. M.F. O'BRIEN: He does. The state-of-the-art facility—and I think there is a general recognition that it is—will train our next generation of police officers. It is purpose built in a modern campus style to meet training and staff development needs. The academy boasts cutting edge facilities for intelligence and detective training. I made the comment on the day that the state, if you like, of police academies very much expresses the esprit de corps and professionalism of an agency at that particular point in time, and the new academy at Taperoo designed in large part by SAPOL and run by them on a day-to-day basis is very much reflective of the inherent professionalism within that particular organisation.

The academy will replace the dependable but sadly no longer suitable facility nearby at Largs North which was serviced some 50 years ago. From the moment when Army Commander Brigadier CE Long formally handed the keys to Police Commissioner John McKinna on 30 November 1961, the old fort became the spiritual home to many thousands of officers in training. Over its lifetime it hosted 240 graduation ceremonies involving over 8,000 officers. The facility nurtured the culture, standards and attitudes which permeate SAPOL today and undoubtedly there are countless stories and memories of the old fort in the collective memory of SAPOL today.

The new academy along with the opening of the new headquarters at Angas Street heralds a new age for SAPOL. The facilities offer a suite of training programs for recruits and managers alike, an advanced scenario village to realistically recreate practical experiences, spacious outdoor facilities, the capacity to accommodate boarders from interstate and more. The hope is that in time the new facilities will produce as rich a canon of history as the old facility did when it was in operation.

At a cost of $53.4 million the new academy represents the largest single investment in our force for over 50 years. It comes off the back of a sustained increase in resourcing to ensure our police force is better able to service the community and usher in this new age. The most recent bargaining agreement negotiated successfully in 2011 ensures our police are better paid than ever before. The police budget has more than doubled in the last 10 years. There are now more than 800 additional uniformed police on our streets than a decade ago.

Including the new academy, $180 million has been spent on the construction or refurbishment of facilities since 2002. This includes the new headquarters; vehicle impounding facilities; new or upgraded stations in metropolitan, regional and remote areas; and in March I was at the opening and participated in the commissioning of a new station at Murray Bridge.

The commitment of money and infrastructure has been matched by a tireless effort to enshrine legislation which is better able to combat crime. This government has extended firearm prohibition orders, protection for vulnerable witnesses and a raft of laws in 2012 covering serious and organised crime. In short, we have been busy as a government creating the legislative framework which allows SAPOL to carry out their work in confidence.

An entire year of celebration is planned in recognition of SAPOL's 175 years. Any less than a full year of celebration would be grossly inadequate. The Police Historical Society will be conducting open day events throughout May, featuring the memorabilia of the force's early years. These historic artefacts from the organisation's rich past offer us a lesson for its future. I recommend that everyone in the parliament avail themselves of the opportunity to participate in this host of activities.

Structurally today, SAPOL bears scant resemblance to what it was in April 1838. I think it is worth bearing in mind that this is only two years after the foundation of the then province of South Australia. It has been pointed out also that we were the first state to have a centralised police force, which in large part was due to the fact that we were established as a free colony; we were not a penal settlement, we did not rely on regiments of the British Army to perform the policing function. We actually had a civilian force well before any other colony or province in the nation and that is something of which we can be duly proud. We started off with 10 mounted and 10 foot constables in that year of 1838, and today we have 4,500 serving officers who are housed at 28 metropolitan and over 100 regional and rural stations.

The force has been an integral part in the development of our society and the development of our economy. They have provided surety to our community, given them a great sense of personal safety and this, in turn, has been a major driver for the prosperity of the state. When looking at the overall history of this particular state, we have to recognise that, in all years but the first two, SAPOL has been with us, and every step that we have taken as a community SAPOL have been in lock step with us. I think they have made a great contribution to the state and I am sure that the 175 year celebration will be warmly embraced by the community.

Mr PISONI: Sir, I draw your attention to the state of the house.

A quorum having been formed.

Mr GARDNER (Morialta) (11:48): I am very pleased to rise today to speak on the motion that this house congratulates the South Australian police force for 175 years of service to our state and recognises the excellent work of police officers who have served, and currently serve, our community, and I commend the member for Stuart for moving this motion. It recognises the excellent work of both past and present officers who have dedicated their lives to keeping South Australia safe.

I have been, from time to time, extremely interested to read up on the history of the South Australian police, who we now know as SAPOL. As members in this chamber would be aware, when South Australia was founded it was not a colony, but a free province. As such, unlike our cousins interstate, there was no provision made for a police force initially because there was no crime anticipated. Marines who travelled with the early pioneers were responsible for addressing crime, were it to arise. Unfortunately, unforeseen circumstances led to the need for a police force. Apparently, crime happened.

According to Chas Hopkins' book, South Australia Police 1938-2003, 'unsavoury characters entering the new settlement from the neighbouring colonies' meant that a police force was established to 'protect the citizens from various concerns'. Governor Hindmarsh established the South Australian police on 28 April 1838, when he appointed inspector Henry Inman (from which Inman Valley in the member for Finniss's electorate derives its name) as the sole commander of SAPOL at the rank of inspector. He had allocated to him 10 mounted constables and 10 foot constables. Within two years, the size of the police force had more than doubled to 51. You may believe that asking 51 people to police our province would be a big ask, but interestingly enough the number then of police officers for the population was almost identical to today, with around 0.35 per cent of the population being police then and approximately 0.37 per cent today.

SAPOL has a long history of being a police force of firsts, as the member for Stuart has described. It was the first police force to be centrally administered by the province. In 1893, it was the first police force in Australia to use bicycles for work—appropriate, given the reputation Adelaide is seeking to establish as a city friendly for bikes. In 1915, it became the first police force in the British Commonwealth to have two policewomen commence their careers, Kate Cocks and Annie Ross. The member for Stuart described how the policewomen at the time had the same powers as policemen at the time. I believe a member in the chamber suggested they should have more powers, and that may well be justified. Anyway, uniformed policewomen later entered the scene in 1974. It was also the first police force in the world to use fingerprint technology and to install radios in police cars.

SAPOL's official vision is to be held in the highest regard as a modern, motivated, progressive and professional organisation, responsive to the community's needs and expectations. From past experience, it is clear that SAPOL has illustrated its ability to professionally meet its vision. On a personal level, I have spoken occasionally in the house—and I am sure many other members have colleagues and friends serving in the police force—of one of my groomsmen, a very close friend of mine. I remember the absolute pride he felt when he was admitted to the Police Academy. It was an absolute pleasure to attend, along with the Hon. David Ridgway and the member for Lee, the graduation ceremony when he became a police officer. The fact that people who enter our police force have such incredible pride in their uniform, and in the service they perform, is a sign of the high regard in which SAPOL is held throughout much and most of our community.

In Morialta, I only have the one lonesome police shopfront at Newton. Currently, my electorate is shared between the Eastern Adelaide LSA and the Hills Fleurieu LSA, and I suspect members would remember the issues I have raised in the past in regard to Woodforde and Teringie and other near-city areas being held within the Hills Fleurieu LSA, as opposed to the Eastern Adelaide LSA. While I have the utmost respect, as I said, for all SAPOL's officers, I believe that asking them to get from Mount Barker to Woodforde or Teringie, or even the Adelaide Hills section of Rostrevor, within 10 minutes is possibly beyond even their driving skills, and possibly beyond the laws of physics.

Given that the development is about to go ahead in Woodforde, I am hopeful that further consideration will be given to moving these suburbs into the Eastern Adelaide LSA. I note that the DPA released by the Deputy Premier a couple of weeks ago, which he was kind enough to eventually send me a copy of and which arrived on my desk today, does in fact identify the nearest police station to that new development as being Glynde. I look forward to his explanation as to why he is telling the new DPA that their local police station is not in fact in their local service area. Given that at the next election Morialta has been redistributed, Morialta is also gaining sections of the Holden Hill LSA on the northern side of the River Torrens.

On Saturday, SAPOL celebrated its 175th birthday by opening up the academy at Taperoo to 2,000 interested members of the public, and I am informed that it was a fantastic occasion. It is probably a good time to commemorate that 61 officers have died in the line of duty of the 175 years. I know that on National Police Remembrance Day, which is on 27 September, those members of the House of Assembly and Legislative Council who have served in the police force will pay particular memory to those, and I believe all members will as well. I will be wearing my tie, presented by the association, with great pride.

There are six core functions of SAPOL: to uphold the law; preserve the peace; prevent crime; assist the public in emergency situations; coordinate and manage responses to emergencies; and regulate road use and prevent vehicle collisions. I think that, almost exclusively, SAPOL are doing a fantastic job. They are very highly regarded; certainly, when I talk to colleagues around the nation and other jurisdictions, I take great pride in talking about the high esteem in which South Australia's police are held. I congratulate the force and all those who serve in it on the 175th anniversary of the South Australian police force.

Mr VENNING (Schubert) (11:55): I join the member for Stuart in congratulating the South Australian police force on 175 years of magnificent service to our state, and I commend him for bringing it here. I also note the words of the minister in seconding that motion. I also commend the member for Stuart's research on this matter; he has put a lot of time in.

I know his predecessor, the Hon. Graham Gunn, also had a high admiration for the police force, and he gave me a lot of good advice in relation to representing small communities: go to the local police station first and they will tell you how things are, and develop a good relationship and you will always know what goes on in the town.

As a member of this place for over 22 years, I have enjoyed and appreciated wonderful cooperation and a relationship with South Australia Police, especially officers in the small communities, as I have just said. In the old days, back in the 1800s, Crystal Brook had a police officer who was referred to as the 'Trooper'—that must have been the earlier police. The hut of the old trooper still exists in the former national trust, which is now called the Crystal Brook History Trust, of which I was the first president.

The first trooper was a fellow called Trooper Munday. History tells us that he was quite fearsome, and used to ride around on his pushbike or the old 1922 Humber car, which still exists in the community. The Munday family have been in the community ever since, and I note that his grandson Graham has just retired from the Nuriootpa police, where he was very much respected. I am sad that he left.

I want to apologise for my inaction when I did not publicly support the three officers who were publicly pilloried in the media over the incident with that young lady. All the locals knew that these officers had an impossible situation, and there should have been a public response to support these police officers because all three are very good and well-respected citizens. If that is the reason Graham Munday resigned, I regret that, because he was a very good officer and a very good member of the community.

The Hon. R.B. Such: What was the outcome?

Mr VENNING: The outcome? The police officers were publicly humiliated. There was no case to be heard; the media just chose to side with this young woman, who was allegedly way out of order—it was apparently shocking, the way she used to carry on, and she apparently had a history of that too. But, the police officers took the perceived rap, as you do in a public job, and I am sorry. I should have come out then and there, and I was going to, but I thought at the time, 'Well, maybe I shouldn't,' but I should have, in hindsight.

A cousin of mine, Milton Clark, was also a very high-ranking police officer (I believe he was a detective-sergeant), and he retired a couple of years ago. These people are career officers and really do live their job. He too was a fine officer and a fine person and is still volunteering in the community.

The police live in the community and most become a vital part of these communities, particularly the smaller communities, as the member for Stuart would know. His predecessor would certainly have given him the same information and advice he gave to me. Even though some conflicts can occur in a small community, when your job is to maintain law and order and there is an incident, the job comes first, and I think we all appreciate the position they have.

The Nuriootpa police do a wonderful job. Nuriootpa has the basic command centre of the whole region, and they have many officers stationed there. I have a direct contact in there, and if anything happens I just pick up the phone and I speak to a senior officer straightaway, without any paperwork, any nonsense or any red tape. I am told of the situation straightaway, without any hoo-ha, carry-on or whatever, and I really appreciate that. There is no ringing up ministers, no getting up in this place and grandstanding. We fix it. I have never been let down once—not ever. They are really on the ball, especially with calls to my office, and I have had several.

With one caller to my office, I will tell you, we had to push the panic button because a constituent got out of control and the police were there, I reckon, in three minutes. In three minutes they were there. They got the situation handled very quickly indeed. It was excellent. Also, we have had a couple of false alarms with the burglar alarm system and they have proven that they are usually there before Adelaide informs us that the alarm has gone off. So, we get very good service from there.

The South Australian Police Association do a wonderful job as well, supporting all their ranks in all their roles. I enjoy reading the police magazine, which we all get in this place. I always go through it. It is a great production. I congratulate the editor and all the contributors. Last Saturday at the football, which was incidentally a great match where Port won, I spent time with Peter Alexander. He wished to be remembered to all you guys. He is retired now, but he had an important role in heading up the Police Association.

I was also very pleased in my representations to the police, particularly in relation to police numbers in some of our small communities. I cite one at Mannum. There can often be a hiccup at Mannum, particularly when the bikies are in town, and I have often raised concerns. Eventually, we got an extra officer placed down there, but it seems to come up pretty regularly that these communities have a need, and I have made several representations on that.

I was also pleased that, probably about eight or 10 years ago now, we were very successful, and I led the charge, to be able to get all retired police officers issued with the Police Medal. They did introduce the medal, but they were not going to backdate it beyond the date that they were bringing them in. Eventually, after a lot of discussion with ministers and whatever, we were successful. So, all serving police officers, as long as they retire honourably, get the medal, which I think was a great and successful outcome.

To Commissioner Gary Burns, to all past commissioners, to all ranks, past and present: congratulations and thanks for 175 wonderful years. We have a proud force, and those who choose this vocation are to be very much respected. We take our safety and our peace for granted. We thank you very much for being out there to maintain that. Again, 175 years—happy birthday.

The Hon. R.B. SUCH (Fisher) (12:02): I would like to make a brief contribution to this motion. It is a long time of service, 175 years—

The Hon. J.D. Hill interjecting:

The Hon. R.B. SUCH: —but I think it is fair to say that—sorry?

The Hon. J.D. Hill: I said, 'almost as long as yours'.

The Hon. R.B. SUCH: No, mine seems like 175. That's perception, not reality. We have, I think it is fair to say, in South Australia one of the best police forces, not only in Australia but in the world, in my assessment. They are not perfect, and I will touch on a few imperfections later, but at the outset, I would just highlight the service given by nearly all police officers that has been of the highest possible standard and the highest possible integrity.

When I was at school, we had to do an aptitude test. The result was that I was suited for the police force or to be a plumber. I think there were two choices there: one to become wealthy and one to wear a uniform. Anyway, a lady who lived nearby influenced me to go down the path of education rather than to get into the police force, but I think I would have been a good detective.

Growing up in Blackwood, we had Sergeant Gregory, who was the father of Bob Gregory, who was a minister in here. A good bloke, Bob—his father was the old-style police officer who, if he caught a young lad, would say, 'If you do that again I'll give you a kick up the you-know-what.' Nowadays, unfortunately, police are not allowed to use those sort of tactics, which were minus paperwork and probably more effective than all the paperwork that results today.

Sergeant Gregory, being the local police officer based at Blackwood, was a member of the community, like they are in most country areas. It is worth acknowledging, I think, that police—a bit like judges and magistrates—are separate from the rest of the community in the sense that they cannot really be one of the boys or one of the girls in terms of their behaviour.

That is both a good and a bad thing because I think in some ways it does isolate them from the rest of the community by definition, and I think that is compounded when you have single-person police patrols and police who are working by themselves, for example, on traffic duties day in, day out. I do not think that is healthy for them and then, to be largely mixing socially only with other police, does give rise to concern.

I know a lot of fine police, some currently serving and some not. Up the road we have Ken Cocks who is an ex-traffic officer from Sturt—fantastic bloke, honest as they come. He is now retired. My local superintendents are Tom Rieniets—fantastic bloke, ex-Star Force, straight shooter in more ways than one—and Superintendent Graeme Adcock. Several of my close friends' sons are inspectors. I will not be too precise for obvious reasons, but one of them is ex-Army, ex-Duntroon, and the other one has been and still is involved in the Army Reserve as well.

I think they are the new face of policing because they are tertiary educated, and I think it is important that, over time, the education level of police be raised. I know they can do courses but I think the days of being a thumper are well and truly over. It is a paradox: we try to teach our young people not to be violent and aggressive and then we expect some of them to be in the military and deal with people who want to kill them. I guess the same applies to a police officer. They do not know whether the person they pull over is going to give them a kiss or kill them, so that does create some issues.

Senior Sergeant John Wallace was a police officer who ran Hindley Street Police Station. He is another fantastic police officer. When I became the local member, he was operating in the Aberfoyle Park area. He had an old Holden—not a police vehicle; they have modern ones—and he used to go around in his spare time and talk to young people who were often, but not always, in single-parent families. He would chat to them and say, 'Are you helping mum? Are you going to school? Are you doing this?' His approach, I think, was fantastic.

In Hindley Street he had a complaint made against him by other police who said, 'We're not social workers like he is; we're meant to be law enforcers.' His view was that you do not need to get a young person up against the wall and beat the daylights out of them. You can interact with them, and he used to buy fish and chips and sit with the street kids. I know for a fact that he probably saved the life of many young people. It was fantastic. That has always been a bit of an issue in the police force: those who see their role as enforcers in the narrow sense and those who see their role not as social workers but as something more than just enforcers.

Over time, we have had some issues within the police force. When you have, as we currently do, over 4,000 police, you will get a few bad apples but it is not many, and I think it is to the credit of the police force that they have been able to generally ferret them out and get rid of them and bring them before the court or some other disciplinary tribunal.

I do have some concerns as a result of talking to police about the internal disciplinary process of the police. I am not sure that sometimes it is not a bit over the top and the police, like most organisations—paramilitary—are often tougher on their own people than they are on other people. That process within the police force is largely secretive. They have a magistrate come in, but I think at some stage there should be an overall review of the police force, not because I am suggesting they are bad but because situations change. I think there should be a focus on efficiency and effectiveness to see whether the way in which the police force is structured and the way it operates should continue.

I will not name the senior person who spoke to me recently and queried whether the police should actually be doing traffic matters. I can see the logic—if you are on highway patrol, the person you pull over may be trafficking drugs, so it may be more than just a traffic issue—but there are some functions that are performed by uniformed police that probably need not be performed by uniformed police. Clearly, if you had a different branch of traffic police you would have to have them in some sort of uniform.

In talking about some of the blackspots, if you like, in the history of the police force, we had the saga of commissioner Harold Salisbury which, as we know, arose because of a suspicion and a claim that the police were running secret files on members of parliament and others, in particular to identify whether they were a security risk and perhaps engaged in homosexual practices. I think we have moved on from then. We have had some notorious characters—Colin Creed and Barry Moyse—and the reason we know them is that they are rare in terms of that level of offending.

When I met with the outgoing commissioner recently, he said to me, 'Look, at the end of the day it comes down to the integrity of the officer,' and that is true; it is self-evident—I found out in my little traffic matter, which is not that little in terms of, in effect, how you are labelled. You cannot both be telling the truth. Someone is not telling the truth. I do not lie and never have, but this traffic officer Gregory Luke Thompson, who was based at Sturt, lied from go to whoa, and his colleagues have said to me that he was always very rubbery. He caught a lot of people because he did not do the right thing.

I think it is important in terms of traffic enforcement that there is proper supervision of what people do and proper assessment of the reports they make. I have spoken to senior New Zealand police and they said that what happened to me would never have happened in New Zealand because it was so rubbery. There was no photograph, and it was just a beat-up and a whole pack of untruths. I think the police force needs to have a look at how it handles some of those things. In terms of traffic, I think the focus should be on education, rather than punitive measures.

Mr BROCK (Frome) (12:12): I also rise to support the member for Stuart's motion to congratulate the South Australian police force for 175 years of service to our state and to recognise the excellent work of police officers who have served and currently serve our community. Again, I congratulate the member for Stuart on bringing this to our attention in this great year.

Along with other members speaking here today, I reinforce my dedication to, belief in and confidence in the South Australian police force. We have had some great history over the 175 years, but I will not go into the history: I will talk about the last few years as I have seen them myself. As the member for Stuart said, these police officers, whether they are male or female, go to work every day and they do not know whether they are going to come home. They take their lives in their hands and they do not know if they are going to come up against a violent person, somebody with a firearm or whatever.

The other issue I really appreciate and understand sincerely is that when especially country police attend an accident or an incident they most probably know those people. They understand and they may know that person. They have to attend domestic violence, road accidents, robberies and many other incidents. It is a real issue, and the general public may not understand that. Other people go to work and they are protected. They can go to work and work safely, but the South Australian police officers do not know what they are going to encounter when they get there. I just believe that they are the best in Australia. As the member for Fisher may have indicated, they are world class. That must be an indication because of the number of recruits coming from overseas who want to join our police force in South Australia.

These officers, and not only officers but cadets, come into a community like Port Pirie—and I will talk about my community in particular. As I have known for many years, they are reluctant to come into certain communities, but once they get there they become a part of that community. They become part of school councils, sporting groups, and the Rotary and Lions clubs. Some of them go far and beyond what they have to do as part of their duties.

They bleed when something happens. I will just relate an incident where, unfortunately, I was caught speeding on a road. I was picked up and I disputed the issue so they asked me to have a look at the camera. I got out of the car but, unfortunately, the officer who was talking to me was squatting alongside the front door and when I opened the door I pushed him over. He was only a cadet but I did apologise very sincerely.

I am relating this story to show that these people are human. I went over and spoke to the officer and saw the camera. They wanted to show me the camera. I said, 'If you're saying I've done the crime, I'll do the time.' I was picked up for speeding on Three Chain Road where the limit is 60 kilometres and I was doing probably 65.

However, that officer from SAPOL used to walk past my place every morning. Then, all of a sudden, I did not see this gentleman. After a few weeks I questioned him and asked, 'Don't you live in the area now?' He said, 'Yes.' I asked 'Do you go for your walk every morning?' He answered, 'Yes.' I said, 'I don't see you any more.' He was very embarrassed that he had pinged me and gave me a speeding fine. I said, 'You were doing your job.' That shows the dedication of country people: they do bleed when they have to book somebody for an offence.

It just goes to show that these police officers are very human. In my electorate—which is a great electorate—in the LSA there are some great police stations and quite a few of them are one-officer stations. The trauma is that when these people go on planned leave or planned sickness, we need to ensure—and I know the government is trying to control money—that they are replaced in the community. The community feels very safe or a lot safer when there is a police officer in the location.

It does not take long for the word to get around that one of the stations may not be staffed and then somebody may do something they should not do. However, if a police officer is there it is a deterrent. It is the same when I am driving—and I do a lot of kilometres in my job as the member for Frome; probably about 80,000 to 100,000 kilometres a year—where I would rather see a police officer on the road—

An honourable member interjecting:

Mr BROCK: Yes, I do about 80,000 to 100,000 kilometres; I basically do a car a year. However, I would rather see police cars on the road as a deterrent because people respect that. That would stop a lot of crimes like speeding and things like that. The other thing is that we have been very fortunate in my LSA, in Port Pirie in particular, because we have had some great, very dedicated police officers. There has been great respect for them in the community. We have had some great superintendents.

Unfortunately for our LSA, we do not appear to keep our superintendents for very long because while they are there it is a great training opportunity and they then go on to greater things. At the moment we have Bryan Fahy, for argument's sake—and there have been quite a few others who have come down to Adelaide and gone on to greater things: assistant commissioners and so forth.

The idea today is to commemorate and say thank you very much to the South Australian police force for their 175 years of service. As with other members here, I will also congratulate the new commissioner, Gary Burns, who is a terrific guy. I have known Gary for many years through my local government experience. I think he is going to be a great asset in the role. I congratulate the police force for a dedicated 175 years and wish them very well for the future.

Mr ODENWALDER (Little Para) (12:20): I rise to make a very brief contribution to this. I have obviously spoken many times in this place about my admiration for the police and I do not want to harp on it. I think members have made really good contributions today. I want to thank them all and I want to particularly thank the member for Stuart for bringing this motion. I want to also thank him for not using the occasion as a political football.

Mr Griffiths: Never intended to be.

Mr ODENWALDER: No, never intended to be, that is right. It was a genuine motion. I have actually been out to the excellent new academy for the Minister for Police and the member for Stuart was there. I know that he approaches this in a bipartisan way, which may not have always been the case but hopefully this is a new start for all of us. I think this house should always have bipartisan support for our police. They obviously work very hard. Members here have articulated that very well, so I will not go over that.

I want to echo the support that the member for Stuart showed for the Police Association. I think they do an excellent job representing their members. They have very wide coverage. When I was in the academy, it was strongly encouraged that you join the association for your own best interests and I think that is exactly right. I am no longer a member of the association, but I try to eat and drink with them as often as possible.

The Hon. J.D. Hill interjecting:

Mr ODENWALDER: More of one than the other. I also want to congratulate the member for Stuart for singling out the Blue Light initiatives, Neighbourhood Watch and Crime Stoppers because those three things, I think, have really been integral in cementing the place of the police in our community, not just as enforcers, as the member for Fisher described. So, they really are part of the community and they really do welcome public interaction.

They have shown that recently as well with Facebook and Twitter by embracing that new social media. We have seen a lot of success in that actually so, if you do not follow SA Police News on your social media, you should because they have a lot of success and they get a lot of crooks out of it.

As people have mentioned, SAPOL are consistently rated the most trustworthy of the nation's police. As most of you obviously know, I used to be a serving police officer in another life, admittedly for a relatively short time, so I know firsthand how hard these police officers work. I also know that they are, almost without exception, people of pretty high integrity who are really committed to the safety of the people in this state.

Obviously, a bit like our culture in here, there is a bit of black humour. Amongst themselves, they are not often as politically correct as we are publicly, but they do that sometimes as a self-defence mechanism and I think it is pretty understandable. I still talk to serving police as often as I can. I rate some of them as friends and even more of them as Facebook friends, so I am constantly having interactions with police officers and hearing their views about the job and how it has changed. You get some old coppers who say the job has changed for the worse. I think they are in the minority, but I am also receptive to some of their complaints.

Their complaints are largely about things like paperwork and processes which take them off the road. They believe, quite rightly, that their job should be on the road. I think we have done what we can to help that. I know the new commissioner is committed to that. I was lucky enough to be at a Police Association lunch—I am not sure if the member for Stuart was there—where the commissioner articulated pretty well some of the measures they are taking in terms of streamlining some of the processes and making some of the documentation submissions electronic because you have to produce some of these documents in triplicate and quadruplicate and it wastes a lot of time that these coppers quite rightly believe should be spent out on the road. I am glad the new commissioner is addressing those processes.

On ANZAC Day, I was lucky enough to catch up again with an old friend of mine called Athalie Edman who, in 2006, was made the South Australian Police Officer of the Year for her work out at Elizabeth. When I was there, she was instrumental in establishing the community policing teams out there. So it was good to catch up with her and hear about their successes and about some of the challenges they faced. She is no longer there, but she outlined it very well and I certainly believe there should be more of that community-based policing in our communities. It does work and it does help demystify the police so that people do not see them as enforcers or paramilitary but see them as there to help the community. I am more than happy to support this motion. I think it is an excellent motion, and I take this opportunity to thank and acknowledge all our state's hardworking police.

The Hon. J.D. HILL (Kaurna) (12:25): I thank the member for Stuart for raising this motion, and I am very pleased to stand and support it. I was brought up in New South Wales and came to South Australia in 1974, and I remember my first impressions of Adelaide compared to my home town of Sydney. There were three of them. One was that I found it remarkable how people queued for buses in Adelaide, whereas in Sydney they just rushed to cram in the door. The second thing I noticed was that when I walked down the street (and I still find this to be the case) I walked about twice as fast as most of other pedestrians. I guess that is part of growing up in a bigger, busier town.

The third thing—which was, I guess, the most noticeable—was how much more polite and respecting the police officers were in South Australia compared to Sydney. I was frightened of policemen in Sydney, and most young people (as I was at that stage) were, because they would harass young people, they would pick you up and they would search you. I recall having my car stopped randomly by a police officer who started searching through it, I assume looking for drugs. He was looking at all the crap on the floor of the car, asking me to unfold bits of tin foil and God knows what, looking for something. He did not find it—there was nothing there to find, I should say!

Members interjecting:

The Hon. J.D. HILL: That is my story, and I'm sticking to it. I do recall that lack of respect for the law and lack of respect for citizens which was part of the culture of the New South Wales police force. That was a culture led by a corrupt police establishment and by a corrupt policeman, the then police commissioner Allan, who was in cahoots with the then premier Robin Askin. They exchanged bundles of money between them and were collectively corrupted by the gambling industry in New South Wales, which was everywhere to behold.

The Hon. R.B. Such: The famous words, 'Run over the bastards.'

The Hon. J.D. HILL: Exactly, but of course I will not repeat that. So I grew up not thinking very highly of the police. When I came to South Australia as a 24 year old to work as a teacher I was astonished how much more civil, responsible and law-abiding the police in South Australia seemed, and that is still the impression I have. I think we are very lucky in this state to have a police force that is well trained, well controlled, very disciplined and dedicated to serving the interests of its citizens by upholding the laws.

In my own electorate of Kaurna, where the Christies Beach police station is adjacent to my office, I have had nothing but excellent interactions with all the serving police officers there. I have met many of them over the years and when I have had issues, which I think the member for Schubert mentioned, I just ring up the local police station and they tell you what is going on. If you have information which has been passed on to you—which you do from time to time—they thank you for it and use it appropriately.

I also accept what the member for Fisher said. I guess there have been some examples in the history of our state, particularly around the Duncan drowning, where the reputation of the police force has been affected, but I think they have overcome that and they now have a culture that they work to which has produced one of the finest police forces in the world. I am very happy to add my congratulations on their anniversary this year.

Mr GRIFFITHS (Goyder) (12:28): I also wish to congratulate all members who have contributed to this motion. I have never had any pretensions of being a police officer; I do not think my personality was ever suited for it. However, my wife does say that with the commentary I make about people when I drive I could have been a patrol officer out on the roads, because I do have an opinion on many of the drivers I see on the road. In saying that, I want to put on record the respect that I hold.

I am one of those people who reads the Police Journal when it comes to our electorate office because I want to see some of the emotion that has been captured in it. I look at stories about an investigation, and sometimes about a life that has been spent, and it is often emotional, talking about some absolutely terrible things that officers have seen and investigated, and when they have found the culprit as part of their work. I also make sure I read the resignation letters. Many of those people have chosen to leave the police force after a relatively short time, but a lot of them have served for 30 years and even for up to 43 years, which I think is the longest term I have seen served.

From the longer term members and, indeed, all of them, comes a camaraderie that they feel as a group of people who try, under very challenging conditions, to do the absolute best they can for their community and their families. I have some respect for the impact it has on their families, too, especially on those based in regional areas where there might be a single officer station with the expectation of a response to many different things and the challenges that puts upon not only their life but also on social opportunities and their family.

I am an old-style person and I appreciate the old-style police tactics that were used. Given that we are here not necessarily admitting things but talking about some of the facts of our lives, as a much younger man celebrating a footy grand final I had had a little bit too much to drink on a Saturday night and I drove my car. The police officer was good enough to look at me and say, 'Steven, I'm going to go past your house in five minutes' time; if you're there, we shan't talk about this again; if you're not, you'll be in trouble,' and I was there and I was waving to him as he drove past and then I went to bed. I appreciated that very sound advice he gave to me—

Mr Venning: That's what you tell us.

Mr GRIFFITHS: No, that's truthful. I appreciated his advice to me because he recognised that he could have made a ping on me, no doubt about that, and I would have been absolutely guilty of it, but he gave me a chance, and I have respected it ever since and tried to make my kids recognise that, too. We all have to have a life and a personality and do some things, but I appreciated his very sound advice, and it stayed with me for a very long time.

I am one of the members who has a great level of respect for the LSA officers and the ability to contact them to find out some things. As members of parliament, we are spoken to by people in the community who are concerned about an action taken by police. Indeed, I have always believed that there are two sides to a story, so it is not until I get the other side that I can form a judgement. I have found that whenever I have been in contact with police—normally, for me it is through the senior sergeant who is based at the Kadina station—the reply has come very quickly, setting out the facts and giving me some information that has really put some equality into the discussion.

When I have relayed that to the people that I have spoken to, a lot of the time it has opened up their eyes to information they were not aware of that might have related to a family member, too. So, I congratulate police on their ability to be able to respond quickly to information sought by members of parliament. It is actually a great pleasure to see that that process works beautifully, even as an opposition member, because it helps us serve our community very well.

Not long after I first came in here, I was in a car with a lady who worked within this building at the time and who was a former police officer, and she told me something I found very interesting. At that stage, she had been in the police force and left, but it was her observation and, I presume, from talking amongst police officers, that in recent years it had been a trend that a male entering the police force stays for about eight years and for a female about five years. The member for Little Para is nodding his head at that, so it might be generally true.

That shows the challenges they face. Others move on to different career, and when you read the Police Journal you see that others have chosen to work for the Federal Police sometimes, or they have gone interstate for opportunities, or they have gone into completely different things, or they have retired. It is not an easy life. You have a sense of involvement with the team of police who are around you, and you work within the law that is provided, but then you have the challenge of not only what it does for you personally but also what level of respect exists within the community.

That is an important issue. If we look back a generation and even further, there was a level of respect attached to the police that I presume made it an easier role to undertake. Now the challenge is to hold a very responsible position, to be sometimes forced to make difficult choices, and to enforce the law at all times, but people do not like it. A lot respect it, but a lot completely disregard it, and those are the ones who create a lot of problems for police. We all have stories to tell.

In my electorate, I am contacted quite often by people who are concerned about the younger members of our society who sometimes choose to do silly things in cars and, because of the technology available to them with phones that makes them aware of where police are and what they might be responding to, they can get away from that circumstance and it makes it really hard to ping people. So, police are trying to develop tactics that allow them to get around that and still uphold the laws and still do what the community expects in a very demanding time, so all power to them for doing that; it is a very hard life.

I have a person in my electorate, a retired police officer, who is now an elected member in local government, and I have heard him speak at a public function of the time when he was an undercover police officer. He did some royal commission work and worked in Western Australia in an undercover role, and he spoke to about 120 people the night I heard him talk about it, and it was just amazing.

He put himself in life and death situations while maintaining another self, to some degree, but he actually had multiple versions of that; it depended on where he was and who he was with as to who he had to become. I cannot imagine how you can keep the secret, be true to your principles of being a police officer in trying to catch the bad guys, but actually get the information you need to try to ping them, while all the time saving your own life. I think this bloke is truly amazing, but I understand that he is representative of a lot of other people out in the community who have played those roles in the past, and I have complete envy for them with what they have done, and total respect for it, and they are the ones who deserve to be looked after by society as they retire, because they have put themselves in very difficult situations. It is amazing story, and if you want to hear Mark Wasley speak, you would be totally caught up in it for quite some time.

I refer to another police officer, Brian Finch from Minlaton. He recently retired, about two years ago. He was a police officer at Minlaton for a bit over 20 years and an absolutely great bloke. He had the respect of the community, played cricket forever, plays golf still and was involved in community and sporting issues. His family became involved and daughters have since married into the area, and that sort of thing. He and his wife have chosen to retire and still live in the community, and they are still exceptionally well respected. I know that heaps of police officers have to make difficult choices and can never walk down the street and hold their head high because of the community's perception of them, so I commend him.

I also note that yesterday the member for Giles referred to Superintendent Scott Denny leaving Whyalla. He has come to the Yorke/Mid North LSA area. Scott and I have had some email contact, but I have not actually met him yet, so I am looking forward to that. The member for Torrens smiles, so he must be a good bloke! I hope he does some great things for policing in the area. There has been a bit of change over in LSA leaders, as occurs in a lots of different industries, but he has a good cohort of people there, and he is lucky that the majority of the community respect what the police do. I welcome him to the region and hope his time will be well spent and the community benefits from that.

In closing, I recognise that this is 175 years—the member for Fisher has represented parliament for about 14 per cent of that time, so he has had a long commitment too. To think of the stories, the people and the families affected by policing over 175 years, the challenges they have had, and I cannot even imagine what it was like being a horseback police officer who was by themselves for months at a time, hundreds of miles away from other levels of support and always proud in their uniform, in their presentation and proud of the laws they represented. South Australians as a whole should commend the member for Stuart on this, and we should congratulate Commissioner Gary Burns and his total police team for what he does, what they do and what all their predecessors have done to make South Australia a great place.

Mr SIBBONS (Mitchell) (12:39): I rise to speak on the motion moved by the member for Stuart, and I congratulate him on this wonderful motion, and congratulate everyone here today who has spoken on this topic. As many members have said, I also have a great respect for our police force in South Australia, and I have a great relationship with my local LSA, the Sturt LSA, and I guess a number of members also would have great relationships with their local LSAs and superintendents. Also, the work that our local LSA officers do in our community is another thing that is part of our community, the great work that they do in relation to Neighbourhood Watch and various other things such as community education and being there to guide our youth who are possibly at risk. Their education role is pivotal to our community, and I really thank them for the work they do in that particular area.

From a personal interest, my son Luke from a very young age has wanted to be a police officer, and his dream was to get into the police force. From that point I started to take a very keen interest in understanding the police force a lot more and understanding the risks that potentially are involved. Certainly, from a parent's point of view, you really want your son going into a career that you believe is going to be safe and long-term. From researching police and understanding that career I came to the conclusion very quickly that, yes, the job does have risks and there are going to be times when you are going to really rely on your training and the expertise that you have learnt during the role, but in general it is a very safe and rewarding career.

Luke was lucky enough at the age of 18 to be accepted into the police force as a cadet. He will be graduating in May, and that is something that makes me very proud as a father, to see him get through and ultimately graduate as a probationary constable. I understand that he is heading off to the eastern LSA, which is around the city and also through Norwood, and so on, so he is going to enjoy that quite well. I also have a greater appreciation for the training for police officers. It is such a diverse amount of training that they go through. It was not until Luke went to the academy that I got a full appreciation of the actual training that they go through.

On one of Luke's first out-phases, when he went out to one of the police stations, he went into a situation where somebody had passed away. He instantly resorted back to that training about how to deal with grieving people. On reflection he said to me, 'Dad, I thought when I was going through this training, no, no, we're never going to use this, but instantly it switched on and the training was there.' He was able to deal with that situation and deal with the grieving family, and when he walked away he was amazed at how training in day-to-day life really helps. I think the training that does go on at the academy is a true indication of how well our police officers work in South Australia and how well things are going within the police force.

I do not want to take up too much more time, but I would also like to thank the now Commissioner Gary Burns for his leadership. I think his leadership has been fantastic over the period since he took over the helm. In his new direction, I think police are certainly heading for a great period. I would also like to congratulate the wider police force for the work that they do in our community, and I certainly wish them well for the next 175 years. Let's not underestimate the people in the police force who made our police force what it is. That history needs to be told, and I thank the member for Stuart for identifying some of those achievements and I also thank everybody else in the house for sharing some of those memorable moments. Once again, I congratulate the police force. I wish them well and thank them for the service that they provide to our community in keeping us safe.

The DEPUTY SPEAKER: If the member for Stuart speaks, he closes the debate.

Mr VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN (Stuart) (12:44): Thank you Mr Deputy Speaker, and let me acknowledge you as a former police minister. In the role of Deputy Speaker, you would certainly, I am sure, share everybody's support for this motion. I do genuinely appreciate everybody's support. I think it is very fair that this house gives the police the credit that they deserve. It is wonderful to have had that and I appreciate all of the contributions. The minister, certainly, was the only person who strayed away from the content of the motion and no doubt he felt that was important to do that, but I appreciate his support for the motion.

I particularly recognise the member for Little Para and the member for Mitchell who have direct connection: one as a former serving police officer; and one as a very, understandably, proud father of a nearly-probationary constable. I think that is wonderful and I do remember being at one of the Police Academy graduations with the member for Mitchell recently where he represented the Minister for Police and told me at the time that his son was coming through, I think the second or third one after that. I know how proud he is and we are all very pleased for him. So thank you for your genuine contribution.

Let me also just add, as many members have said—the member for Goyder, the member for Frome, the member for Schubert, and others—what good support we get with regard to working relationships with police in our local our electorates. It is 100 per cent true that all we have to do as members of parliament is pick up the phone, talk to the right person and we will get the direct information. I think that responsible relationship in both directions is something that we all value very highly and really do appreciate. Certainly, in the electorate of Stuart, which covers a broad part of the state, that is the case in all parts of that electorate.

I touch very briefly on the role of country police—something that the member for Goyder touched on. Again, it is particularly pertinent to the electorate of Stuart and I know that, as a person who lived in Pimba (a very small, tiny place) for seven years—nothing to do with parliament, in fact, I never imagined at that stage that I would be a member of parliament—the way the police interacted with all the community in that district then and there was very important. It is critical in Hindley Street, it is critical at Christies Beach, it is critical in the lovely leafy suburbs of Adelaide and I think it is perhaps even more critical in the country areas where the two-way relationship becomes even more critical. The community need a policeman or woman and it is very often just one person, but the police officer needs the community as well and that relationship almost always works extremely well.

I was brought up as a small boy and told by my parents, 'If you ever get yourself in trouble, if you are ever lost, find a police officer.' That was the beginning of my relationship with the police. I was taught that they would be the people who would help you if you needed a hand. Of course, that moved on to, 'Don't break the speed limit when you're driving because they will be the people who will ping you'—quite understandably. So I have a very positive view of the police from my early growing up, but not everybody does. I have close friends who do not share that view and I respect that for various reasons. I respect their opinion; I do not share it.

Police are not perfect in the same way as members of parliament are not perfect. Mistakes happen; things happen for one reason or another that should not happen, and they need to be recognised as incidents, as mistakes. It is inappropriate to brand a whole profession for the fact that occasionally mistakes are made or the wrong thing is done.

On the whole, South Australian police are absolutely outstanding. They are the most trusted and most respected of all of the police in our nation. I think it is an extraordinary credit to the South Australian police that they are the oldest police force in Australia. Today, 175 years later, they are also the most trusted and most appreciated police force in Australia.

I thank all the people who have had anything to do with the police, obviously serving officers, but many other people who have worked in police as well for the last 175 years. I give my thanks and gratitude to their families as well, whether it is their children, their siblings, their spouses, their parents or grandparents. When you have a police officer in the family, you share some of the tension, you share some of the risk that those people take when they go to work every day to represent us and keep us safe.

Motion carried.

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