Crime Stoppers Australia has welcomed the establishment of the Parliamentary Friends of Crime Stoppers, a bipartisan group of Members and Senators committed to supporting greater awareness and understanding of community safety issues and the important role Crime Stoppers plays in helping police to solve, prevent and disrupt crime across Australia.
The Parliamentary Friends of Crime Stoppers has been established for the 48th Parliament and is co-chaired by The Hon Justine Elliot MP, Pat Conaghan MP and Dai Le MP.
Crime Stoppers Australia Chair, Ian Stewart AO APM, said the establishment of the group reflected the broad recognition of the value Crime Stoppers delivers to communities across Australia.
“Crime Stoppers has always been built on the fundamental principle of empowering people to safely and anonymously share information that can help protect their local community, family, friends and the other things that matter most to them.”
“The establishment of the Parliamentary Friends of Crime Stoppers provides an important opportunity to strengthen awareness of community safety issues, and the role Australians play in helping prevent and disrupt crime.”
Mr Stewart thanked the Parliamentary Friends co-chairs for their leadership and support.
“I would like to sincerely thank Justine Elliot, Pat Conaghan and Dai Le for their willingness to champion this initiative and support stronger engagement on issues that matter to communities across Australia.”
“Community safety is not a partisan issue. The bipartisan nature of this group reflects the shared commitment across the Federal Parliament to safer communities and stronger partnerships between the public, law enforcement and government.”
Crime Stoppers Australia provides a trusted and anonymous pathway for people to share information about crime and suspicious activity. Operating nationally and working in partnership with police and law enforcement agencies across Australia, Crime Stoppers helps ensure information that may otherwise never come forward can be safely shared and acted upon.
The Parliamentary Friends group will provide opportunities for Members and Senators to engage with Crime Stoppers on emerging crime trends, community safety challenges and the important contribution made by Australians who choose to speak up.
Mr Stewart said the establishment of the group comes at an important time for Crime Stoppers.
“Our recently released independent economic and social impact report found Crime Stoppers generates more than $216 million in value for Australia each year and returns more than $11 for every $1 invested.”
“Importantly, the analysis found that almost 45,000 reports would not have been made without Crime Stoppers. Those are thousands of pieces of information that help law enforcement prevent harm, disrupt criminal activity and keep communities safe.”
“The Parliamentary Friends of Crime Stoppers provides another opportunity to build understanding of the impact that can be achieved when communities are empowered to safely share information.”
Crime Stoppers Australia looks forward to working constructively with Members and Senators from across the Parliament to support informed discussion on community safety issues and strengthen awareness of the role Crime Stoppers plays in helping create safer communities.
