Call for extra police

KATINA CURTIS

THE NSW Police Force has been called on to ensure there is a physical presence in Kiama's police station 24-hours a day, not just a car somewhere in the municipality.

The State Government and the police say that Kiama is constantly manned because there is always at least one car assigned to the area.

But Kiama Mayor Sandra McCarthy said the community expected that with a police station on the town's main street, they should be able to access police through the station at all times.

"Community expectations are that there be police there to serve their needs and address the situation," she said.

"I have great respect for the local police and what they do, but think they need more resources."

She said the council had implemented a number of initiatives to make the municipality safer, including the summer bus program and running the Liquor Accord, but that policing was not the council's duty.

"The bottom line is that it is the NSW Government's responsibility. That's one of their core areas of responsibility, providing an adequate police force," she said.

Police Minister David Campbell and Member for Kiama Matt Brown said it was better for police to be out catching criminals than staffing the police station.

Mr Brown said he preferred to see police "out there catching crooks " not just in their office minding phones".

When Mr Campbell was asked whether more police could be rostered on so there was always someone in the station, he said: "Police officers in a station in a Local Area Command have a role to catch crooks and I would prefer they were doing that than answering administrative questions."

The Opposition's spokesman for police, Mike Gallagher, who is an ex-police officer, said he believed the strategy of using Local Area Commands was wrong for NSW.

"It all comes down to having locally based and locally led police," he said.

Chief Inspector Bob Noble, who is responsible for the Kiama station, said he had requested the deployment of extra police to the area over the October long weekend and the Christmas holiday period.

Long-time Kiama resident Ruby Valavous said it was upsetting that with Kiama's larger population, the station was not open all the time.

"I think the parliamentarians should pull their fingers out and do something about it," she said.

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