Crime response blasted

Hill challenges MPS to address city’s scourge

TOWNSVILLE’S mayor has launched an extraordinary attack on the state government’s efforts towards curbing the city’s crime ‘scourge’.

Mayor Jenny Hill used a ‘mayoral minute’ at Wednesday’s Townsville City Council meeting to attack the Palaszczuk’s government’s response to local property crime, and accused them of moving to “soften” criminal laws for offences including public drunkenness and urination.

Cr Hill also vowed to work directly with chief executive

Prins Ralston to push for convicted property crime offenders to do more “meaningful work” in the city as part of any community service orders.

She said property crime had impacted “thousands” of Townsville residents and the issues “can no longer be ignored by the state government”.

More than 1100 people have been arrested by Townsville police for 3745 property crime offences in 2022 as part of Operation Uniform Cygnus.

“Townsville residents are sick and tired of the platitude that this is just a small number of offenders,” she told the gallery.

“They are sick and tired of the state government being perceived as being far more concerned with the rights of offenders, not the rights of the victims or the right of the community to feel safe.”

Cr Hill then quoted Albert Einstein before challenging state Labor MPS Aaron Harper, Scott Stewart and Les Walker to address the issue.

“Einstein once said the definition of insanity is to keep repeating the same thing and hoping for a different result,” she said.

“I challenge the three state government MPS in Townsville to look at the example of the member for Cairns (Michael Healy) who has actually had the gumption to call out his own government’s failures on youth crime.” Mr Harper hit back at Cr Hill on his Facebook page on Wednesday afternoon and asked for a “redaction”, saying he had been trying harder than anyone to tackle crime in Townsville.

“I strongly disagree with the mayor’s comments today (Wednesday) at council in regards to local MPS (perceived lack of concern) over youth crime,” he wrote.

“No one else has been trying harder to tackle crime in our city. “I respectfully say to Mayor Jenny Hill that all levels of government have a role to play in community safety and I look forward to working with all in helping reduce crime in our community.”

Cr Hill also attacked the push to decriminalise public urination and intoxication following a state government committee review,which she opposed at hearings in October. “The report following the inquiry (tabled on October 31) … confirmed my suspicion, that the whole committee exercise was a cover for a predetermined outcome,” she said.