Strategic priorities

Achievements/Outcomes/Status

Delivering core services

Ensuring police are available to address calls for service in the timeliest way possible (Priority Policing)

The Service developed the Priority Policing Policy to enhance first response policing. One strategy being effectively employed in relation to road safety was the deployment of non operational staff over holiday periods to perform traffic duties.

• Increasing the number of first response officers while maintaining our capacity to deliver specialist and support services

There has been an injection of new officers in regions, providing for more front line police across the State.

• Civilianising roles where appropriate to release police to operational duties

The Policelink contact centre is progressing and will see the employment of significant numbers of civilian staff members.

• Attracting and retaining police and civilians to ensure sufficient staff are available with the appropriate skills to protect and serve the Queensland community

• Providing operational equipment and facilities to enable police to do their job safely and effectively

• Ensuring the health, safety, welfare and professional development of Queensland Police Service members

The QPS continued to provide support for its employees through a comprehensive suite of services directed at employee physical and mental health, work/life balance, training and development.

• Encouraging ethical and professional leadership and practice

• Development of a revised Corruption Prevention Plan
• Increased training to QPS staff in the area of complaint recording, management and investigations and ethics
• Continued development of complaints management and recording (Project Verity)
• Revision and update of chapter 18 of the Human Resource Manual (Complaint Management)
• Continued development of risk management processes
• Enhanced inspections program and compliance audits of police establishments and work units
• Review and audit of organisational activities supporting service delivery
• Revision of staffing model within the internal investigations area to manage investigations, overviews, and inquiries into police related incidents.
  

Efficient, innovative, well-planned
service delivery

• Improving business practices and processes including through the use of e-business.

• Reviewing models of police service delivery.

• Linking QPS planning processes with regional planning processes.

Information and communications
technology (ICT)

• Initiatives that move us toward a future of high technology policing that is responsive and community focussed—they include:

- computer aided dispatch

- communications centres

- The Public Safety Communications Project (PSCP)—a joint initiative with the Department of Community Safety—is progressing the development of business requirements and business cases for issues such as rationalisation of communications centres and investigation of mobile communications networks.

- The PSCP completed a draft mobile communications strategy for amalgamation with the Department of Community Safety and input into joint radio and mobile data business cases.

- An Invitation to Offer to replace the current ESCORT CAD system was prepared for release to the market.

- A joint North Coast Region Communications Centre facility within Sunshine Coast District will become operational in August 2009.

- mobile services

- Queensland Police Records and Information Management Exchange (QPRIME)

- Policelink—the QPS Police Contact Centre

Construction work on the joint contact centre commenced in March 2009. Policelink is scheduled to commence operations in March 2010. Forty new client service officers have been recruited.

• Ensuring the safety of police and detainees by installing and/or upgrading CCTV in all 24- hour watchhouses.

In April 2008, Government approved $8 million over four years to provide upgrades in the nine highest priority watchhouses.

Upgrades will be completed at Cunnamulla and Normanton later this year. Upgrades at the remaining seven watchhouses are scheduled for completion over the next three years.

• Helping implement systems that enable us to work more effectively with our criminal justice system partners and other jurisdictions.

Collaborative work between the Integrated Justice Information Strategy (IJIS) and the QPS has seen the progression of the Electronic Transfer of Court Results project.

In February 2009, the QPS reached a major milestone in the CrimTrac program of work with the release of the National Police Reference System consumption module. The module allows Queensland users to search for a person of interest on the national database by other provisioning jurisdictions in Australia.

Police Academy Project

• Building a centre of policing excellence that will help ensure our policy and practices are evidence based, and our police have the knowledge and skills they need to be world class.

Work is continuing on the new Police Academy at Wacol which will enable the consolidation on the one site of policing related training infrastructure.

A building necessary for driver training has been refurbished.

Policing Indigenous communities 

• Working with partner agencies to address the causes of crime.

The Service continued to investigate and address the links between drugs, alcohol, substance misuse and violence, in partnership with other Government departments, non-government agencies and the community. Various crime prevention projects have also been undertaken.

• Delivering the Government-endorsed policing model, using a combination of state police and Police Liaison Officers.

• Responding to the CMC Review and participating in the whole-of-Government
  reform agenda.

It is expected the Review report will be released in the second half of 2009. The QPS will then lead the development of a Government response.

Road Safety

• Reducing the road toll by implementing and evaluating those initiatives announced as part of the 2006 Road Safety Summit, and arising from the Service’s January 2008 Traffic Summit:

- Vehicle Impoundment

Vehicle Impoundment legislation and the support systems that are now in place have been crucial tools in the effort to change driver behaviour in Queensland. The QPS now has dedicated, trained vehicle impoundment coordinators in place in each region around the State to manage the process of vehicle impoundment.

- Fixed Camera and Digital Implementation

- Intelligent Traffic Analysis System

- Random Roadside Drug Testing

This year the Roadside Drug Testing Unit was expanded, and is now staffed by sixteen full time police officers, enhancing the unit’s capacity to conduct random drug testing across the State.

In 2008-09 officers conducted 9 332 saliva tests, with positive readings returned at a rate of 1:39.5.

The unit participated in 104 operations across the State, ensuring that random saliva testing is conducted anywhere anytime.

- QPS Road Safety Action Plans.

The safe system framework has formed the basis of the Action Plan under the following strategies:

• Safe Roads and Roadsides
• Safe Vehicles
• Safe Speeds
• Safe Road Users.

These strategies will be evaluated at the end of the current Plan with a view to developing more road safety actions for the community of Queensland.

Vulnerable people and the criminal justice system

• Helping first response officers deal with people who are vulnerable, including children. Such strategies include court diversion for people who are mentally ill or intellectually disabled.

• Implementing the Queensland Police Service Disability Service Plan.

An interim review and survey to gather information on the experiences of people with a disability, their families and carers with police was completed.

Changes to accommodate emerging priorities and needs were made.

A communication strategy was developed to improve education and
awareness of QPS members about the plan.

Drugs 

• Investigating and addressing the links between drugs

A range of investigative strategies are used including surveillance, the use of drug detection dogs, the execution of search warrants, and the conduct of approved controlled covert operations.

• Investigating and addressing the increasing use of amphetamine type stimulants within the community

Various proactive strategies have been adopted (See page 58) including:

• 'Project STOP' – a centralised pharmacy database system, which has improved regulation of pseudoephedrine
• the awareness raising project 'Putting the Breaks on Speed'
• strategic alliances and collaborations with police, government, industry and the community
• awareness sessions to educate on the dangers of illicit drugs, clandestine laboratories, and risks of organised crime syndicates infiltrating relevant organisations.

Major and organised crime 

• Developing new tools and techniques to address major and organised crime, including the Titan threat/risk assessment system, telephone interception powers, and the Australian National Victim Identification Library (ANVIL).

In June 2009, the Telecommunications Interception Bill was proclaimed and enacted. The QPS has commenced an interim telephone interception capability to assist in the investigation of serious crime, criminal networks and associated criminal activities.

The national ANVIL business case is being prepared as a joint initiative between the QPS, the AFP and CrimTrac for consideration by all Police Commissioners in 2010.

• Identifying, targeting and suppressing high threat criminal networks and illegal commodity markets (including Outlaw Motor Cycle Gangs).

OMCG Task Force Hydra continued to target organised criminal activity associated with OMCGs. (See page 57). The Heavy Vehicle Investigation Team successfully targeted organised heavy vehicle crime. (See page 57).

• Enhancing our counter-terrorism strategy including prevention, intelligence, investigative capability, general response and consequence management.

The QPS continued to provide a lead role in counter-terrorism, through participating in a range of State and Federal initiatives which supported the sustained development of counter-terrorism capability. (See page 43).

• Maintaining and developing strong partnerships with other law enforcement agencies and academic institutions.

The QPS has maintained and developed strong partnerships in many areas of law enforcement, including: State and Federal counter-terrorism initiatives, Task Force Argos, child safety coordination, sexual assault support services, fraud prevention and transnational crime, the task force against graffiti, crime prevention through environmental design, cross border investigations, drug trafficking, various conferences, and the Healthy Workplaces collaborative research study with Griffith University.

• Ensuring proceeds of crime are a consideration at every police engagement.

A major emphasis is placed on the identification and seizure of proceeds of crime. For example, during the year the State Drug Investigation Unit was involved in the issue of 33 restraining orders worth an estimated $14.3 million.