Budget will deliver additional police for counter terrorism, regional Qld

Fifty extra police will hit the beat in Queensland following an announcement by Premier Anastacia Palaszczuk, Minister for Police Mark Ryan and Police Commissioner Ian Stewart today.

The announcement was made at the new site of the $46.7 million world-class counter-terrorism facility at Wacol for the Queensland Police.

“In recent months we have all seen the horrific terror related incidents unfolding right around the world and unfortunately we are not immune to these threats,” Premier Palaszczuk said.

“My government is prioritising through this budget the safety and security of our state through increased resources and infrastructure in counter terrorism for our Queensland police.

“We have allocated $46.7 million to the Westgate facility which will include indoor firearms ranges, a scenario village and specialist training areas to increase capability in managing terrorism and other critical incidents.

“On top of this we have committed $108.6 million over four years for an additional 30 police to be allocated to counter terrorism within the Queensland Police as well as an additional 20 police to be placed by the Police Commissioner throughout Queensland in areas that require additional police presence.

“This is a significant investment in ensuring the safety of Queenslanders and providing our police with the resources and infrastructure they need to be better prepared to respond to any future critical incidents in our state.”

Police Minister Mark Ryan said the funding approval of $46.7 million over three years for the counter terrorism facility will not only provide our police with a state of the art facility but will also generate more than 130 jobs during construction.

"A detailed business case has been conducted and the Queensland Police has already completed significant work including planning and site preparation that forms part of their strategic master plan for the 140 hectare site which will ultimately include training, specialist and logistics hubs.

“This fantastic counter-terrorism facility coupled with our 30 additional counter terrorism police and 20 frontline officers is a solid investment in the future of community and police officer safety in Queensland and reaffirms the Palaszczuk Government’s commitment to support our hard working police men and women with more resources and better facilities.”

Police Commissioner Ian Stewart said the extra police combined with the new world-class facility at Wacol would ensure the QPS was well equipped to continue its focus on counter-terrorism.

"Although the national threat level remains 'probable' we need to ensure our police service has the resources and officers required to counter violent extremism in our state," Commissioner Stewart said.

"We are very pleased to receive the support of Government so that we can continue to confront emerging community safety issues head-on and provide a high quality police service in Queensland."