The new legislation will afford PSOs the power to make arrests and carry out searches for drugs – as well as requesting names and addresses of crime witnesses.
The new legislation comes in the wake of what has been described as a “crime wave” by opposition leader Matthew Guy.
However, the expanded powers have been disavowed by Green MP Colleen Hartland who says an increased PSO presence will push more drug users away from public transport and behind the wheel of a car.
“We’ve been treating personal drug use as a criminal problem for decades and it’s gotten us nowhere,” said Hartland.
The legislation will be introduced to parliament this week.
H/T: The Age
