Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
We know that as part of the budget, the governments
confirm they are going to be spending a record amount
on law and order, or certainly that's what they've said.
The total budget for policing, Corrections and the Attorney General's
Department's going to be one point three four billion dollars.
They're saying it's a one hundred and twelve million dollar
more than the last budget. It's going to include six
(00:22):
hundred and eight million dollars for police services, including continued
support for the Remote Policing Plan, police aircraft as well
as CCTV monitoring and school based policing. Sixteen million dollars
to upgrade critical infrastructure and technology as well at the
Triple zero Call Center, and a further two million dollars
allocated to boost emergency communications in Central Australia.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
But there are still.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
Concerns from the Northern Territory Police that an agreement has
not yet been reached when it comes to pay negotiations,
and the union which represents officers say that they are
not will they work not as far as I can understand.
Originally invited to a budget briefing, Now joining me in
the studio is the President of the Northern Territory Police Association,
(01:09):
Nathan Finn Morning Finny, Good.
Speaker 3 (01:11):
Morning Katy, and good morning to your listeners.
Speaker 2 (01:13):
Finny.
Speaker 1 (01:13):
First off, what was your reaction to the budget when
it comes to what's been allocated for the police?
Speaker 3 (01:18):
Definitely, Katy, And as you highlighted just then, the frustrations
around not being initially invited to that government and the
budget briefing we attended yesterday, as we reached out to
him and said, hey, what's going on. We usually invited,
we haven't been invited. We attended yesterday morning. It was
a short briefing and then basically we're locked up for
two hours and then they didn't hand out the budget
(01:40):
paperwork to us. They initially refused to hand out the
budget paperwork to us so we could actually go through
a valid questions. And then about fifteen minutes later, after
we asked, theyally come back in and then handed out
the budget paperwork to us. Why did they not, I'm
not quite sure, Katie. And it was quite frustrating because
we're sitting in there. The briefing went through with a
minor time and we're have to get to sit there
(02:02):
for an hour and a half and basically do nothing,
so we couldn't have our phones, we couldn't have our
equipment with us. So it was quite frustrating and disappointing
that it really come to that, but we got through it.
We ask the questions we need to ask. There's still
a lot of concerns about it that they hadn't announced
what the police budget had been until late last night.
Six hundred and eight million dollars has been allocated as
(02:22):
a slight increase from the previous financial year or the
revised budget for the twenty four to twenty five being
a thirty six million dollar increase.
Speaker 2 (02:29):
Okay, Yeah.
Speaker 3 (02:30):
What we see in that for police is an additional
twenty million dollars to support the roll out of the
police allocation that the resource review that was.
Speaker 2 (02:37):
Conducted, Oh yeah by Vince Kelley.
Speaker 3 (02:39):
Yeah, Vince Kelly some time again. Now we see a
twenty million dollar increase in that. We also see as
you've highlighted the six point six million dollars for JESK
and new technologies. We're rediating that there's nothing in there
for the people actually doing the job. What hasn't been
focused on in this budget for police is an increase
in the police wages can spend all the money we
(03:01):
want on infrastructure. There's a record spend of infrastructure money
in there. That's been a majority of that's been revoted
as well, so that means it's been allocated pre in
previous budgets over the years, hasn't been spent.
Speaker 2 (03:12):
So it's a bring over sort of thing.
Speaker 3 (03:14):
Yeah, it's a prime example. So when they say it's
one hundred and eighty eight million dollars whatever it is
for remote area infrastructure, a lot of that money has
been reallocated from previous budgets that hadn't rolled out. So
example that has Man and Greater Police station. It was
identified it was a new station needed in twenty fifteen.
We are now twenty twenty five. We still haven't seen
that station, and now the cost blowout from that has
gone from around fifteen million dollars to in excess of
(03:35):
thirty seven.
Speaker 1 (03:35):
Million, which is incredibly frustrating. I would imagine when it
blows out to that degree, because you also think to yourself, well,
hang on, we needed this station several years ago, and
that money that is now going to be spent on
the cost blowout or the budget blowout, could have been
invested in frontline offices.
Speaker 3 (03:52):
Yeah, and definitely that's and that's what we see the
need of your investment. We needed in the investment of
the police. Police officers doing the job, performing the job,
hard job every day and they're overwhelmed at the moment, Caddy.
And we've said this time and time again on your station.
But there's some priorities in the budget, especially in around
remote community police stations and new police stations where we
(04:14):
don't have a police presence currently or we provide a
response from other jurisdictions. In respect to that, there's sixty
million dollars allocated for new police stations ones at el
Perulham and ones at Beswick community.
Speaker 1 (04:25):
Is there money allocated go to staff them?
Speaker 3 (04:28):
Definitely not, Caddie, and we were joking. So the problem
we see and in our remote stations is I believe
there was about twenty six vacancies in our remote stations.
We have roughly about fifty two I believe remote stations.
Don't quote me on that, but around that figure. So
at least half of them stations aren't at capacity simply
because we haven't got the housing on the infrastructure in
(04:49):
these remote communities. We current police and then we're looking
at building new police stations. I phrase it like the
Nycliffe Police station. We can build this lovely shiny police
station and we haven't got any police to operate out
of it or operate from it to help the community.
So why are we looking at new police station.
Speaker 2 (05:05):
We can when you can't?
Speaker 1 (05:06):
Yeah, well and look this would be this is a
frustration for the community. Like I mean, we get contacted weekly,
if not, you know, every couple of days about the
Nightcliff Police station for example, not operating at full capacity.
So then you go out to some of those remote
communities and I know I've definitely been contacted by people
living in remote communities saying to me, we do not
have you know, police able to come out to different
(05:28):
incidents that we are experiencing as quickly as what they
should be able to because they're not based in that
particular community and there may be traveling from another one nearby.
It's frustrating, to put it mildly, for the public. But
how did the police feel about that?
Speaker 3 (05:42):
The Police Australian Caddy that the extra pressure that's being
placed on the especially in the remote sense of policing,
is huge. I was on the phone to an ic
of a push station this morning where he hasn't had
power to his house since Easter, so he's had a
temporary generator that has to fill up every day to
house power for his house. He's been suffering these conditions
over the last two days. That's failed. The temporary solutions
(06:03):
have now failed. So he spoke to us and we
advise them to go into Alice Springs, go into town.
This is not sustainable and there needs to be priorities
put in place to make sure that the works around
in supporting our remote It's tough enough to work remote
without the further the challenges that they're.
Speaker 2 (06:20):
Facing, yeah, let alone dealing with that.
Speaker 1 (06:22):
So Finny, I mean obviously that remote policing it sounds
like it is, you know, it is something that there
needs to be a focus on. We do need to
make sure that there are a police out there able
to help the community, but they need to make sure
that there's housing appropriate, housing, appropriate accommodation as well for
those officers.
Speaker 3 (06:39):
There needs to be incentives for people to go remote. Yeah,
it's tough enough to go remote, Katie, but when you're
on a similar wage than what you are in Darwen
and with the luxuries that people, our officers have here
in Darwen. We see that time and time again. There's
no incentives for them to go Bush and given the
aging infrastructure, the housing, we had a commitment from the
(07:00):
previous commissioner to say that we'll increase our members out
Bush to three member stations. We haven't got the infrastructure
to do that.
Speaker 1 (07:06):
So what do you think, I mean, what do you
think needs to happen?
Speaker 3 (07:10):
The priority is remote housing and remote housing for our
police officer in our current communities, not to build new
police stations.
Speaker 2 (07:16):
Okay, yep, So actually I.
Speaker 3 (07:18):
Need I need to actually staff the communities we've got.
Speaker 1 (07:20):
All right, let's have a look at some of the
funding announcements that they have made. I know that the
government have said that they're going to be Obviously there's
funding into CCTV monitoring and also.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
School based policing.
Speaker 1 (07:35):
Sixteen million dollars to upgrade critical infrastructure and technology at
the Triple zero Call Center, and a further two million
allocated to boost emergency communications in Central Australia. Is that
technology at the Triples Center a Triple zero call center
quite old?
Speaker 2 (07:51):
Or what's the goal?
Speaker 3 (07:53):
We have an omber A programs that we've had that
need upgrading. We haven't got the up to date technology there.
So the commitment's been made and we applaud that commitment.
But again, if we haven't got the people there to
answer the phones and to direct those calls, and haven't
got the police officers to respond to those jobs, it's
basically putting the horse before the count before the horse.
Speaker 1 (08:13):
Yeah, all right, So it does sound to me as
though the real critical concern here for the Northern Territory
Police is having the numbers, the police numbers that we
need to be able to deal with all these different
situations that you're experiencing, and that they are paid adequately.
So by the sounds of it, the budget, yes today
a bit of a fail from the Police Association's perspective.
Speaker 3 (08:36):
Definitely, we never see it as a fail. An investment
into police is obviously always needed and make sure that
we have a safe at Northern Territory, and without police
we won't have that. So we're saying we need to
investment in our members. This new budget hasn't taken any
consideration any incentives for retaining our experienced police to make
sure we're able to recruit new police to the Northern
(08:57):
Territory Police Force to assist our current members that are
basically crippling under the pressure that they're being faced and
put under. We need to make sure that the priority
is our resources and our human resources that actually do
the job day in and doubt day out, and that'll
be reminded as we come up to next week. We've
got a coronial here for remember that passed away or
took his own life while serving in the Northern Territory
(09:19):
Police Force. So that's the true and going through that
documentation over the last couple of weeks and getting prepared
for that, it's heartreaching. It's a tough gig. Our members
suffer and they suffer in silence majority of the times,
and when we can be there to be their voice,
we will be there to be their voice and make
sure that they're heard and make sure that they're supported
(09:40):
the best they possibly can, to make sure that not
only they can do their job, but also protecting the
Northern Territory community, because that's what they signed up for, Katie.
They didn't sign up for themselves. They sign up to
protect the community and make sure they can make a
difference in the community.
Speaker 1 (09:51):
So Finny where to from here, you know, in terms
of those pain negotiations and moving forward with the COLP government,
because from what I'm hearing from you over the last
couple of weeks, it sounds as though yourself the association
offices are quite frustrated. In fact, it sort of seems
like the relationship with the government's broken down quite badly.
Speaker 3 (10:13):
It has, Katie, and we admit that, and we're not
going to step back from that. We've got a duty
to do and we've got a job to do. Friendships aside,
regardless of our relationships personally with the government and ourselves.
I've got a job to do and I won't step
back from doing that job. And I was taken back
after we've done an interview last time about I was
quite emotional. I was quite frustrated and where the government,
(10:35):
we haven't got any closer to getting into agreement. We're
working through negotiations, we're still trying to negotiate. Housing still
on the table there to be removed from Darware members
in Darwin. We are frustrated and members are frustrated. And
I've got to act more professionally. And I was quite frustrated,
angry last time when I was on the radio and
I'm making sure that, but I need to represent that
(10:56):
views as well of our members.
Speaker 1 (10:57):
Well, this is the thing that people are saying to
you that they're frustrated. It's actually your job to say that.
It is your job to bring that forward. I guess though,
like for me from the outside looking in, I suppose
what I'm wondering is, how do you guys all move
forward and try to make this work. Because the thing is,
the Northern Territory community is so reliant on Northern Territory
(11:19):
Police and the great job that our police officers do.
Speaker 2 (11:22):
But even you know, for members of.
Speaker 1 (11:24):
The public at different times they're calling the police, they're
not able to get somebody out to attend to the
jobs or to attend to really dangerous situations that they're facing.
Speaker 3 (11:32):
And that's what hurts our members daily, Caddie. The last
thing they want to do is to let someone in
the community down. They want to expect that when someone
in the community rings the police, that our police will
be there. It disheartens them when they can't get to
help the people they need to help. It's a prime
example of the trauma they deal with every day, and
this compounds them. The outcomes from court. They get frustrated
(11:52):
the outcomes of court because they put so much work
into putting the alleged defender before the court and when
they're not dealt with properly. That's an added frustration from
members as well. But also our members just struggle getting
to those jobs and the increased workload that we've seen
and over the last few years with the numbers, we
are getting a few numbers in, but we're still just
(12:13):
above our attrition rate. And to put that into perspective,
we haven't grown that much over the last five years,
and the demand for crime and the increase in crime
that we've seen over that time, our members have been
crippled and they want to help, but they're in a
position where they can't help Katie, and that's demoralizing to
them and frustrating them because they didn't here to sit
(12:35):
behind a computer and do administration duties. They want to
be on the community, out in the community, talking to people,
making sure they're safe and making sure that they can
proactive for the police. We haven't been for a lot.
Speaker 2 (12:45):
Yeah, absolutely well.
Speaker 1 (12:47):
Nathan Finn, president of the Northern Territory Police Association. Always
good to catch up with you. Thank you so much
for your time this morning.
Speaker 3 (12:53):
Always a great pleasure to come in Katie, and lovely
speaking to you and your listeners. But again, our men
and women out there, they are straggling by all means.
We've got First Responders Day coming up next month to
celebrate our first responders. That's not just police, it's the
first responders right across the Northern Territory government, the look
after your community. We say thank you, and obviously for
our men and women in blue. We will fight for
(13:14):
a deal that's suitable to us and to make sure
that our experiences retained and make sure we're attracting new
members of the Northern Territory.
Speaker 1 (13:20):
Please force us, yeah, keep us up to date with
how those discussions go. Always, kat Jenny, thank you, thanks
so much.
We know that as part of the budget, the governments
confirm they are going to be spending a record amount
on law and order, or certainly that's what they've said.
The total budget for policing, Corrections and the Attorney General's
Department's going to be one point three four billion dollars.
They're saying it's a one hundred and twelve million dollar
more than the last budget. It's going to include six
(00:22):
hundred and eight million dollars for police services, including continued
support for the Remote Policing Plan, police aircraft as well
as CCTV monitoring and school based policing. Sixteen million dollars
to upgrade critical infrastructure and technology as well at the
Triple zero Call Center, and a further two million dollars
allocated to boost emergency communications in Central Australia.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
But there are still.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
Concerns from the Northern Territory Police that an agreement has
not yet been reached when it comes to pay negotiations,
and the union which represents officers say that they are
not will they work not as far as I can understand.
Originally invited to a budget briefing, Now joining me in
the studio is the President of the Northern Territory Police Association,
(01:09):
Nathan Finn Morning Finny, Good.
Speaker 3 (01:11):
Morning Katy, and good morning to your listeners.
Speaker 2 (01:13):
Finny.
Speaker 1 (01:13):
First off, what was your reaction to the budget when
it comes to what's been allocated for the police?
Speaker 3 (01:18):
Definitely, Katy, And as you highlighted just then, the frustrations
around not being initially invited to that government and the
budget briefing we attended yesterday, as we reached out to
him and said, hey, what's going on. We usually invited,
we haven't been invited. We attended yesterday morning. It was
a short briefing and then basically we're locked up for
two hours and then they didn't hand out the budget
(01:40):
paperwork to us. They initially refused to hand out the
budget paperwork to us so we could actually go through
a valid questions. And then about fifteen minutes later, after
we asked, theyally come back in and then handed out
the budget paperwork to us. Why did they not, I'm
not quite sure, Katie. And it was quite frustrating because
we're sitting in there. The briefing went through with a
minor time and we're have to get to sit there
(02:02):
for an hour and a half and basically do nothing,
so we couldn't have our phones, we couldn't have our
equipment with us. So it was quite frustrating and disappointing
that it really come to that, but we got through it.
We ask the questions we need to ask. There's still
a lot of concerns about it that they hadn't announced
what the police budget had been until late last night.
Six hundred and eight million dollars has been allocated as
(02:22):
a slight increase from the previous financial year or the
revised budget for the twenty four to twenty five being
a thirty six million dollar increase.
Speaker 2 (02:29):
Okay, Yeah.
Speaker 3 (02:30):
What we see in that for police is an additional
twenty million dollars to support the roll out of the
police allocation that the resource review that was.
Speaker 2 (02:37):
Conducted, Oh yeah by Vince Kelley.
Speaker 3 (02:39):
Yeah, Vince Kelly some time again. Now we see a
twenty million dollar increase in that. We also see as
you've highlighted the six point six million dollars for JESK
and new technologies. We're rediating that there's nothing in there
for the people actually doing the job. What hasn't been
focused on in this budget for police is an increase
in the police wages can spend all the money we
(03:01):
want on infrastructure. There's a record spend of infrastructure money
in there. That's been a majority of that's been revoted
as well, so that means it's been allocated pre in
previous budgets over the years, hasn't been spent.
Speaker 2 (03:12):
So it's a bring over sort of thing.
Speaker 3 (03:14):
Yeah, it's a prime example. So when they say it's
one hundred and eighty eight million dollars whatever it is
for remote area infrastructure, a lot of that money has
been reallocated from previous budgets that hadn't rolled out. So
example that has Man and Greater Police station. It was
identified it was a new station needed in twenty fifteen.
We are now twenty twenty five. We still haven't seen
that station, and now the cost blowout from that has
gone from around fifteen million dollars to in excess of
(03:35):
thirty seven.
Speaker 1 (03:35):
Million, which is incredibly frustrating. I would imagine when it
blows out to that degree, because you also think to yourself, well,
hang on, we needed this station several years ago, and
that money that is now going to be spent on
the cost blowout or the budget blowout, could have been
invested in frontline offices.
Speaker 3 (03:52):
Yeah, and definitely that's and that's what we see the
need of your investment. We needed in the investment of
the police. Police officers doing the job, performing the job,
hard job every day and they're overwhelmed at the moment, Caddy.
And we've said this time and time again on your station.
But there's some priorities in the budget, especially in around
remote community police stations and new police stations where we
(04:14):
don't have a police presence currently or we provide a
response from other jurisdictions. In respect to that, there's sixty
million dollars allocated for new police stations ones at el
Perulham and ones at Beswick community.
Speaker 1 (04:25):
Is there money allocated go to staff them?
Speaker 3 (04:28):
Definitely not, Caddie, and we were joking. So the problem
we see and in our remote stations is I believe
there was about twenty six vacancies in our remote stations.
We have roughly about fifty two I believe remote stations.
Don't quote me on that, but around that figure. So
at least half of them stations aren't at capacity simply
because we haven't got the housing on the infrastructure in
(04:49):
these remote communities. We current police and then we're looking
at building new police stations. I phrase it like the
Nycliffe Police station. We can build this lovely shiny police
station and we haven't got any police to operate out
of it or operate from it to help the community.
So why are we looking at new police station.
Speaker 2 (05:05):
We can when you can't?
Speaker 1 (05:06):
Yeah, well and look this would be this is a
frustration for the community. Like I mean, we get contacted weekly,
if not, you know, every couple of days about the
Nightcliff Police station for example, not operating at full capacity.
So then you go out to some of those remote
communities and I know I've definitely been contacted by people
living in remote communities saying to me, we do not
have you know, police able to come out to different
(05:28):
incidents that we are experiencing as quickly as what they
should be able to because they're not based in that
particular community and there may be traveling from another one nearby.
It's frustrating, to put it mildly, for the public. But
how did the police feel about that?
Speaker 3 (05:42):
The Police Australian Caddy that the extra pressure that's being
placed on the especially in the remote sense of policing,
is huge. I was on the phone to an ic
of a push station this morning where he hasn't had
power to his house since Easter, so he's had a
temporary generator that has to fill up every day to
house power for his house. He's been suffering these conditions
over the last two days. That's failed. The temporary solutions
(06:03):
have now failed. So he spoke to us and we
advise them to go into Alice Springs, go into town.
This is not sustainable and there needs to be priorities
put in place to make sure that the works around
in supporting our remote It's tough enough to work remote
without the further the challenges that they're.
Speaker 2 (06:20):
Facing, yeah, let alone dealing with that.
Speaker 1 (06:22):
So Finny, I mean obviously that remote policing it sounds
like it is, you know, it is something that there
needs to be a focus on. We do need to
make sure that there are a police out there able
to help the community, but they need to make sure
that there's housing appropriate, housing, appropriate accommodation as well for
those officers.
Speaker 3 (06:39):
There needs to be incentives for people to go remote. Yeah,
it's tough enough to go remote, Katie, but when you're
on a similar wage than what you are in Darwen
and with the luxuries that people, our officers have here
in Darwen. We see that time and time again. There's
no incentives for them to go Bush and given the
aging infrastructure, the housing, we had a commitment from the
(07:00):
previous commissioner to say that we'll increase our members out
Bush to three member stations. We haven't got the infrastructure
to do that.
Speaker 1 (07:06):
So what do you think, I mean, what do you
think needs to happen?
Speaker 3 (07:10):
The priority is remote housing and remote housing for our
police officer in our current communities, not to build new
police stations.
Speaker 2 (07:16):
Okay, yep, So actually I.
Speaker 3 (07:18):
Need I need to actually staff the communities we've got.
Speaker 1 (07:20):
All right, let's have a look at some of the
funding announcements that they have made. I know that the
government have said that they're going to be Obviously there's
funding into CCTV monitoring and also.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
School based policing.
Speaker 1 (07:35):
Sixteen million dollars to upgrade critical infrastructure and technology at
the Triple zero Call Center, and a further two million
allocated to boost emergency communications in Central Australia. Is that
technology at the Triples Center a Triple zero call center
quite old?
Speaker 2 (07:51):
Or what's the goal?
Speaker 3 (07:53):
We have an omber A programs that we've had that
need upgrading. We haven't got the up to date technology there.
So the commitment's been made and we applaud that commitment.
But again, if we haven't got the people there to
answer the phones and to direct those calls, and haven't
got the police officers to respond to those jobs, it's
basically putting the horse before the count before the horse.
Speaker 1 (08:13):
Yeah, all right, So it does sound to me as
though the real critical concern here for the Northern Territory
Police is having the numbers, the police numbers that we
need to be able to deal with all these different
situations that you're experiencing, and that they are paid adequately.
So by the sounds of it, the budget, yes today
a bit of a fail from the Police Association's perspective.
Speaker 3 (08:36):
Definitely, we never see it as a fail. An investment
into police is obviously always needed and make sure that
we have a safe at Northern Territory, and without police
we won't have that. So we're saying we need to
investment in our members. This new budget hasn't taken any
consideration any incentives for retaining our experienced police to make
sure we're able to recruit new police to the Northern
(08:57):
Territory Police Force to assist our current members that are
basically crippling under the pressure that they're being faced and
put under. We need to make sure that the priority
is our resources and our human resources that actually do
the job day in and doubt day out, and that'll
be reminded as we come up to next week. We've
got a coronial here for remember that passed away or
took his own life while serving in the Northern Territory
(09:19):
Police Force. So that's the true and going through that
documentation over the last couple of weeks and getting prepared
for that, it's heartreaching. It's a tough gig. Our members
suffer and they suffer in silence majority of the times,
and when we can be there to be their voice,
we will be there to be their voice and make
sure that they're heard and make sure that they're supported
(09:40):
the best they possibly can, to make sure that not
only they can do their job, but also protecting the
Northern Territory community, because that's what they signed up for, Katie.
They didn't sign up for themselves. They sign up to
protect the community and make sure they can make a
difference in the community.
Speaker 1 (09:51):
So Finny where to from here, you know, in terms
of those pain negotiations and moving forward with the COLP government,
because from what I'm hearing from you over the last
couple of weeks, it sounds as though yourself the association
offices are quite frustrated. In fact, it sort of seems
like the relationship with the government's broken down quite badly.
Speaker 3 (10:13):
It has, Katie, and we admit that, and we're not
going to step back from that. We've got a duty
to do and we've got a job to do. Friendships aside,
regardless of our relationships personally with the government and ourselves.
I've got a job to do and I won't step
back from doing that job. And I was taken back
after we've done an interview last time about I was
quite emotional. I was quite frustrated and where the government,
(10:35):
we haven't got any closer to getting into agreement. We're
working through negotiations, we're still trying to negotiate. Housing still
on the table there to be removed from Darware members
in Darwin. We are frustrated and members are frustrated. And
I've got to act more professionally. And I was quite frustrated,
angry last time when I was on the radio and
I'm making sure that, but I need to represent that
(10:56):
views as well of our members.
Speaker 1 (10:57):
Well, this is the thing that people are saying to
you that they're frustrated. It's actually your job to say that.
It is your job to bring that forward. I guess though,
like for me from the outside looking in, I suppose
what I'm wondering is, how do you guys all move
forward and try to make this work. Because the thing is,
the Northern Territory community is so reliant on Northern Territory
(11:19):
Police and the great job that our police officers do.
Speaker 2 (11:22):
But even you know, for members of.
Speaker 1 (11:24):
The public at different times they're calling the police, they're
not able to get somebody out to attend to the
jobs or to attend to really dangerous situations that they're facing.
Speaker 3 (11:32):
And that's what hurts our members daily, Caddie. The last
thing they want to do is to let someone in
the community down. They want to expect that when someone
in the community rings the police, that our police will
be there. It disheartens them when they can't get to
help the people they need to help. It's a prime
example of the trauma they deal with every day, and
this compounds them. The outcomes from court. They get frustrated
(11:52):
the outcomes of court because they put so much work
into putting the alleged defender before the court and when
they're not dealt with properly. That's an added frustration from
members as well. But also our members just struggle getting
to those jobs and the increased workload that we've seen
and over the last few years with the numbers, we
are getting a few numbers in, but we're still just
(12:13):
above our attrition rate. And to put that into perspective,
we haven't grown that much over the last five years,
and the demand for crime and the increase in crime
that we've seen over that time, our members have been
crippled and they want to help, but they're in a
position where they can't help Katie, and that's demoralizing to
them and frustrating them because they didn't here to sit
(12:35):
behind a computer and do administration duties. They want to
be on the community, out in the community, talking to people,
making sure they're safe and making sure that they can
proactive for the police. We haven't been for a lot.
Speaker 2 (12:45):
Yeah, absolutely well.
Speaker 1 (12:47):
Nathan Finn, president of the Northern Territory Police Association. Always
good to catch up with you. Thank you so much
for your time this morning.
Speaker 3 (12:53):
Always a great pleasure to come in Katie, and lovely
speaking to you and your listeners. But again, our men
and women out there, they are straggling by all means.
We've got First Responders Day coming up next month to
celebrate our first responders. That's not just police, it's the
first responders right across the Northern Territory government, the look
after your community. We say thank you, and obviously for
our men and women in blue. We will fight for
(13:14):
a deal that's suitable to us and to make sure
that our experiences retained and make sure we're attracting new
members of the Northern Territory.
Speaker 1 (13:20):
Please force us, yeah, keep us up to date with
how those discussions go. Always, kat Jenny, thank you, thanks
so much.
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