Nationals Member for Euroa Annabelle Cleeland says her office is dealing with regular community concerns over crime in Benalla, with the most recent data from the Crime Statistics Agency demonstrating a clear spike in criminal behaviour locally.
In the last year, Benalla has seen an 8.5 per cent increase in total criminal incidents, a 10.1 per cent increase in offences recorded, a 6.9 per cent increase in alleged offender incidents, and a 5.5 per cent increase in family violence incidents.
For all these categories, Benalla sits well above the state average – with over 23 per cent more criminal incidents, nearly 29 per cent more offences recorded, and an alarming 63 per cent more incidents of family violence.
Ms Cleeland said her office had seen a rise in the number of constituent concerns relating to local crime, particularly in Benalla.
“We are seeing significant rises in crime across much of our regional areas, with youth crime, family violence, and farm crime all continuing to soar,” Ms Cleeland said.
“My office has spoken with several locals in the Benalla region who have expressed concern over criminal behaviour locally – including several farm break-ins, serious assaults, and trespassing.
“I have heard from constituents in their 70s saying this is the worst it has ever been in the area.
“Sadly, there have also so been some high-profile cases in the last year including a tragic hit-and-run, a shooting, and stabbings.”
Ms Cleeland said she has raised many of these concerns with the Minister for Police and Crime Prevention and that she would continue to push to improve community safety across the electorate.
“While Benalla is home to a regional police hub, so many towns across our electorate are simply not provided with enough resources to operate effectively,” Ms Cleeland said.
“This lack of support threatens to leave rural communities without a policing presence and sends a signal that the safety and protection of our rural communities doesn’t matter.
“Many of these small country towns are too far away from a major centre for police to respond to an emergency situation within a reasonable timeframe, putting our communities at risk.”
