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Legislative Council - Fifty-Third Parliament, Second Session (53-2)
2016-11-15 Daily Xml
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Henley Beach Police Station

The Hon. J.M. GAZZOLA (15:12): My question is to the Minister for Police. Will the minister update the chamber on how new police infrastructure in Henley Beach will continue to support community safety?

The Hon. P. MALINAUSKAS (Minister for Police, Minister for Correctional Services, Minister for Emergency Services, Minister for Road Safety) (15:12): I thank the Hon. Mr Gazzola for his important question regarding the Henley Beach Police Station, which of course was opened officially only last Wednesday. I had the great pleasure to be able to join the police commissioner and an outstanding local MP in the member for Colton to be able to officially open the Henley Beach Police Station, which, of course, is a 24 hour a day, seven day a week, 365 day a year, fully operational police station.

SAPOL has a rich and diverse history in the Henley Beach area spanning back to the 1850s. In 1886, Mounted Constable Adam Wright was appointed as the first officer in charge at Henley Beach, a role he performed from May 1886 until his resignation in June 1888. A year later the very first Henley Beach Police Station was opened, a two-man station typical of metro stations in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

Over the next 50 years policing of the Henley Beach area continued to change from mounted police to foot patrols and motorcycles with sidecars, but by the 1960s radio patrol cars were operating. On 18 November 1963, the old station was built on Military Road on the site of the former Henley Beach railway station. That station served the community well for just over 50 years before being demolished. I have very fond memories of that particular old structure, because I worked there on work observation while I was—

The Hon. M.C. Parnell interjecting:

The Hon. P. MALINAUSKAS: No, not that fond. I was there doing work observation myself when I was at school and actively contemplating a career in the police force at one point as a younger man.

The Hon. D.W. Ridgway: You could be the commissioner by now.

The Hon. P. MALINAUSKAS: I am quite happy being Minister for Police. Further, one of my very first visits as the minister was to the building as the site of a new station. There was a demountable office there for construction and a pile of dirt. Not too shortly after, we now see a fully operational station. Superintendent Howard Davies, from the west of Adelaide LSA, an outstanding police officer with many years of great service to our state, gave us a tour of the proposed site and the vision that has now well and truly come to life.

At the last state election, the Premier and this Labor government committed to building the station, a promise that we are now able to report, of course, has been delivered in full. The new Henley Beach Police Station is a truly state-of-the-art station, purpose built for SAPOL, and a facility that will provide a policing hub for not only the Henley Beach community but also for the broader western suburbs. Again, it is a 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year operational police station, as was always going to be the case and which, of course, flies in the face of the complete—but, I have to say, stereotypical—misinformation spread by some members of the opposition.

Rather than enjoying the opportunity that so many members of the western suburbs now have of an outstanding police service in the area, based at an outstanding new station, rather than applauding it the opposition are doing what they do best and complaining and whingeing about something that so many members of the western suburbs, particularly in the area of Henley Beach, have been looking forward to for many years. No wonder Labor continues to win that seat with outstanding representation in the form of the member for Colton.

Designed by Greenway Architects, the police station accommodates SAPOL's operations in flexible, light filled, energy-efficient facilities, establishing growth and flexibility in how SAPOL uses the space now and in the future. Furthermore, proud South Australian company Palumbo built the station, and throughout the course of construction employed over 200 people. The new police station provides Henley Beach and the surrounding areas with modern police facilities designed to deliver improved functionality, meet current policy needs and provide a modernised policing service.

The new station has capacity for up to 100 police officers (and of course we are growing the police force at a rapid rate) and is equipped to support significant growth over the medium term. This station will play a critical role in enabling police to protect Henley Beach and the surrounding communities 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days of the year. The new build is designed to support officers in a manner that puts them on the front line in the fight against crime, to ensure we keep our community safe—something that this government has an outstanding record on.

Contrary to the views of those opposite, the Henley Beach Police Station will always be operational and is an outstanding investment in community safety for the western suburbs. Our police never stop, day or night, and we are very lucky to have outstanding, dedicated officers serving the community of the western suburbs. If those opposite want to suggest that the police stations are not protecting our communities because a sworn officer is not standing behind a counter at 3am waiting for someone to come in and register firearm or something of that trivial nature, then they are uninformed and deliberately trying to scare the community—deliberately trying to scare the community—and, of course, they will be found out. If police are ever needed, then they will be able to call police and have a ready response in due course.

Finally, I want to close by again paying a great degree of kudos and thanks to the incredible advocacy of the local community, which is ably led by the member for Colton in the other place. We remain a government that is utterly committed to working closely with the South Australian police force and their leadership to ensure that they have all the facilities and infrastructure they need to be able to continue to do the important work of keeping the community safe.

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