Page 228 - Week 01 - Thursday, 18 February 1993
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Needles are not tolerated in the remand centre. They are searched for, if we have any reason to believe that they are there. It is a serious breach of the remand centre regulations to have a needle in a cell. They will be confiscated and the persons will be charged. If a prison officer in the ACT or in any prison in Australia were assaulted by a prisoner with a needle, it is likely that that prison officer's employer, whether the ACT corrective service, the New South Wales service, or the Victorian service, could find themselves legally liable. I accept that. We have to accept that throughout Australia. Sometimes needles find their way into prisons, but in the ACT, as everywhere, it is a serious offence.
Police Rescue Squad
MRS GRASSBY: I would not like to stop the run. My question is also to the Attorney-General and it is also about policing. Can the Attorney-General refute the claim that members of the police rescue squad, whilst on duty, attended a public meeting called by the Liberal candidate for the seat of Canberra, Bill Stefaniak, to attack the government policy in relation to policing?
MR CONNOLLY: I am not able to refute that claim. It does, indeed, cause me concern. I have had reports that one of the police rescue vehicles, with police officers in uniform, was at a party political rally last night, that is, the rally called by Mr Stefaniak. Not many other people were there, I am pleased to report, but a police vehicle with serving police was there.
Mr De Domenico was seen to be foaming at the mouth in excitement a couple of months ago, and saying that we must prosecute ACT workers who, he alleged, were, on ACT government time and with ACT government vehicles, at a lunchtime rally out here. We took that on board. Apart from making the point that it was a lunchtime rally, so most workers were there at lunchtime, we said very clearly that the use of government vehicles for that sort of purpose was inappropriate. I was able to report that we had had inquiries made, in exactly the same way that Mr Kaine had some inquiries made when there was an anti-Kaine Government rally when he was Chief Minister and some government vehicles turned up.
We conducted appropriate disciplinary procedures by way of counselling the staff who had misused the government vehicle. I was able to report that to the Assembly - a similar process to the one Mr Kaine undertook. I can assure you that we will pursue the police officers who used that vehicle with the same vigour, and I would hope that our - - -
Mr Cornwell: Why don't you get on with combating crime, instead of chasing them?
MR CONNOLLY: Mr Cornwell, members of the public may well wonder what police were doing with police vehicles at a public rally when they should have been combating crime, as you put it. I would hope, Madam Speaker, that those Liberals who were so vocal in condemning the use of ACT taxpayer funded vehicles at an anti-Liberal rally will also join me in condemning the use of police vehicles at an anti-Labor rally, and I hope that they are prepared to say that.
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