Hon. MAJ SCANLON (Gaven—ALP) (Minister for Housing, Local Government and Planning and Minister for Public Works) (10.00 am): Our government and new Premier are putting Queensland’s safety first. Our Community Safety Plan is investing heavily in prevention and deterrence measures. One of the groups in our community who at times can feel the most vulnerable is older Queenslanders. That is why our government funds a program to help seniors secure their home and the Home Assist Secure program. Our record investment provides a helping hand and a blanket of safety.
In last year’s budget we increased funding for Home Assist Secure with $140 million for another five years to help older Queenslanders and people with a disability carry out things like home maintenance, repairs, minor modifications, and safety and security upgrades to their homes. Now we are boosting funding for another program we have been trialling that helps seniors secure their homes. We will inject another $40 million on top of the $30 million already invested to boost this program in Townsville, Mount Isa, the far north and Toowoomba until the end of the year. The program will help seniors install practical and simple home security solutions that some struggle to afford to install without that help. It includes simple solutions such as strengthening window locks, security screens and doors and installing security lighting. In just over a year we have helped more than 3,200 seniors improve home security, including 188 in Mount Isa, 762 in Townsville, 1,290 in Cairns, 813 in Toowoomba and 217 in greater Cairns.
Together with Home Assist Secure our community safety programs are a critical part of our government’s commitment to community safety. These are measures we are taking to ensure older Queenslanders have peace of mind. On this side of the chamber we have a comprehensive plan to make our communities safer and support victims, deliver for our front line and invest in preventing crime before it occurs. It is a whole-of-government approach to bring together education, health, sport, housing, community services, domestic violence and child protection services. It is a real plan, not just slick slogans.