July 2001 Volume 82 Number 7 "serving the protectors"
By Trevor Haskell PASA Vice President

Comparisons

While I accept that statistics can be used to rationalize all manner of things, there have been a few that caught my eye in recent times. The Sunday Mail in April ran an article on Superintendents Barton and Rogers who had done a swap. It made interesting reading of an interesting concept. Needless to say, there were the inevitable comparisons. As I read them they were: Sturt 300,000 population, police 300; Thanet 130,000 population, police 250. Thanet is obviously over-policed by Australian standards. But there’s more. Crimes per week: Sturt 480, including theft of about 150 vehicles; Thanet 160, including 35 stolen vehicles. Thanet is under-felonized.

Now I am sure that the spin-doctors can show how they are actually more equal and that the presence of more police does not equate to lower crime rates - and what’s more I’ll believe them because I’m a trusting person.

Similarly, there have been spectacular clear-up rates through a series of special operations in South Oz. Great positive anti-crime headlines. Police numbers to deal with certain crimes, or geographical areas to be boosted for a designated period - and guess what? They caught the baddies and lowered the actual crime rates. Well done to all! Go back to where you were and return to the same number of police, and what do we have?

Stop Press

Just as I was about to submit this to the Police Journal, the State budget has been announced, and, as you know, there are to be 90 extra police. Guess they read the same figures that I had read. Obviously, they reworked the premier’s taskforce numbers and found that their excellent work really showed that a 203 increase was the correct number. The new figures are based on sound political principles.

The Blue Day Book

If you are after a copy of that excellent The Blue Day Book - A Lesson in Cheering Yourself Up by Bradley Trevor Grieve, then look no further than the police pensions area where Christine will assist you with a very affordable copy. It is worth a read.

Education and Training

There are state and federal education and training bodies that apparently oversight education funding in one way or another. The association has for some time been on a group called the SA Public Administration Industry Training and Advisory Body (PAITAB). It has fallen to me to sit as the association representative on this body.

I believe that training and education are critical factors for all police employees. I am to embark on a learning curve of some steepness. I would appreciate the thoughts of members relative to the training and education practices of SAPOL. From the recruits through to retirement or resignation, I would be pleased to hear of what is working and what isn’t working in your view.

Please contact me through the association.

PASAweb   Index & Search   Top of Page   Comments   Email to Editor

The Police Journal Online is an official publication of the Police Association of South Australia and is published monthly. Editors of kindred publications can seek permission from the Editor to re-publish any Police Journal Online article. Copyright 2001  The Police Association of South Australia sustance