By Alesha Capone
The state opposition has announced a
$9 million commitment to build a police station in Point Cook if it wins the state election.
Opposition Leader Matthew Guy made the announcement while in Point Cook on Friday.
Mr Guy said the station would operate for 16 hours a day and would also have a 24-hour van, to patrol the Point Cook area.
His announcement comes as the campaign for the November 24 state election heats up.
In May, the state government released its annual budget, which included $41.4 million in funding to buy land for a new police station at Point Cook and relocate the East Melbourne Police Station into a new building.
The budget did not state how much out of the $41.4 million would be dedicated to each project, and the government has not answered Star Weekly’s questions on the matter.
However Mr Guy said the state government has only allocated enough money to buy
land for the Point Cook police station, not build it.
He said in contrast, the $9 million in funding promised by the Opposition would pay for both land and construction of the station.
Mr Guy said the site for the station was
still being “scoped” but it would be built within Point Cook’s activity centre.
He said it would be up to Victoria Police to decide how many police would be based at the
station.
Liberal candidate for the seat of Altona, Christian Martinu said many Point Cook residents supported a police station in their suburb.
“Everywhere I go, people are telling me they feel less safe … and they think a police
station in Point Cook will have an important role servicing parts of the Altona electorate and help keep them safe,” he said.
Police Minister Lisa Neville said the state government had “already funded the land acquisition for a future Point Cook police station”.
“We’re funding the biggest infrastructure build across Victoria Police in a generation, rebuilding and upgrading 43 police stations – that’s three times the number of station upgrades funded by the former Liberal government,” she said.
■ More election reports: Page 10-11
