Minister for Police Lisa Neville today announced $700,000 to help tackle youth crime in the Geelong area.
Ms Neville and Member for Geelong Christine Couzens joined representatives from Victoria Police, the City of Greater Geelong, the G21, local youth services agencies and community groups at a youth crime prevention workshop today.
While the number of young offenders has fallen over the past decade, a small number of young criminals are committing serious crimes more frequently.
The Andrews Labor Government has provided the $700,000 to support specific interventions in Geelong for those young people at risk of offending or offending now. This will be a joint partnership of courts, youth agencies and police.
The funding is part of the Labor Government’s $10 million Youth Crime Prevention Grants Program to tackle the underlying causes of this youth crime.
This is in addition to the Government’s massive $2 billion boost to tackle crime, including 3135 new police over the next five years on top of normal attrition recruitment, 42 new youth resources officers, new police powers, and carjacking and aggravated burglary laws.
The focus of the Community Safety Statement is on the critical role Victoria Police plays in contributing to community safety by preventing, disrupting and detecting crime but Victoria Police cannot do it alone.
This funding will help to make communities safer – intervening early, diverting young people from crime, and getting them more involved in their local areas.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Police Lisa Neville
“Victorians deserve to be safe and this is just one part of a series of initiatives to stop the youth crime we have been seeing.”
“We are working with local Geelong leaders and experts to intervene early to break the cycle of crime and build a safer community.”
Quotes attributable to Member for Geelong Christine Couzens
“This is an investment in the future of Geelong’s youth, and will deliver evidence-based crime prevention projects that make a difference to their lives.”
“Intervening early and getting young people more involved in our great community will make a significant difference to community safety.”
Reviewed 19 August 2020