Ms Sonia Hornery MP, State Member for Wallsend, has called on the NSW Government to give the Hunter its fair share of policing resources.
In 2017, only seven recruits have been allocated across all three Hunter Police Local Area Commands–Central Hunter, Newcastle City and Lake Macquarie. This compares to the five recruits that Wagga Wagga or Tweed Heads received in the latest allocations.
Ms Hornery has spoken to the media five times this year alone about the lack of new officers and the increasing need for more police in the area.
Ms Hornery has been tirelessly working to bring the Government to account for this oversight, continually questioning how decisions about the allocation of policing resources are made. So far, the Government has not explained why Newcastle–the second largest city in the state–continues to miss out on new police.
Quotes attributable to Member for Wallsend, Sonia Hornery
“Time and again, the Government has ignored the safety needs of Newcastle and the Hunter.”
“They reneged on their promise to build a police station at Glendale and have ignored calls to reopen the Wallsend police station and increase staffing and opening hours at Beresfield station.”
“Every week, I receive complaints about the lack of policing resources. One man called my office after he had waited for police to arrive for over three hours after being assaulted.”
“This is not the fault of our police officers, who do the best they can with limited staff and resources. The Government must do better by them.”
“On what basis does Wagga Wagga get five extra police and Newcastle just two?”
“The Government must do better to explain the rationale for police resourcing in NSW. Many Wallsend residents are calling for more police on the beat and this Government is ignoring them.”