John Silvester’s five-point plan to tackle Victoria’s crime problem and police shortage

Sly Of The Underworld says getting ‘tough’ on crime isn’t the answer to Victoria’s problems.

He said getting ‘smart’ is.

Sly offered a five-point plan to help deal with Victoria’s police shortage and growing crime numbers on 3AW Breakfast.

He said red tape and an outdated police model was making life more difficult than necessary for police.

‘The police model is still stuck in the 1970s, when pubs closed at 10,’ Sly explained.

He said 200 police were on duty across Melbourne each night.

?’Compare that to Crown Casino, which at the same time has 800 people working,’ he said.

‘Their model is about flexible staffing.’

Sly called on the government to act immediately.

‘This is the fork in the road,’ he said.

‘Do you want to be popular as a politician? Or do you want to do good?

‘If you do not do something with the PSOs, you are a craven coward looking to the polls.

‘You can get a stripper dressed as a police officer at your house quicker than you can get a real police officer.’

Sly suggested…

• A police ‘advice’ line to handle non-urgent calls.
• Broadening the role of Protective Service Officers so they aren’t being ‘wasted’ at train stations.
• Revamping the IT side of policing. He said officers were ‘driven spare’ by paperwork.
• Negotiating a new deal with the Police Association to get 10 per cent of the force working at night, not 1.5 per cent.
• A national summit on crime.

Click PLAY below to hear more from Sly on 3AW Breakfast