THE state government has dismissed claims it has been left red faced over a letter to Wagga MP Daryl McGuire that said there was limited evidence to support CCTV as an effective crime prevention tool.
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In the wake of the shutdown of the Nowra CCTV the government announced it would introduce regulations to enable the system to be used.
But a letter from Parliamentary Secretary for Justice David Clarke MLC, who wrote on behalf of the Attorney General Greg Smith, to Member for Wagga Daryl McGuire revealed the government had refused to fund cameras because “there is limited evidence to support CCTV as an effective crime prevention tool”.
Kiama MP Gareth Ward denied the government was sending mixed messages.
“David Clarke is wrong, wrong, wrong,” Mr Ward said.
“The letter from David Clarke is clearly not the view of the government.
“We not only funded the CCTV cameras in Wagga as part of a Building Partnerships program but this state government acted swiftly to enforce regulations to solve the problem once we were confronted with the issues with Shoalhaven City Council from the tribunal.
“I support CCTV as do the government.
“My support for closed circuit televisions cameras cannot be questioned.
“I was the one who pushed so hard for them to be installed while I was on council and I have fought even harder since we had the decision of the Administrative Decisions Tribunal to keep them there.
“And when we had a problem with the tribunal we fixed it.
“I totally disagree with David Clarke.
“Our response was swift and we acted expeditiously in the pursuit of a resolution.
“That alone is clear evidence that the government sees these cameras as a success and as a crime fighting tool.”
He said CCTV cameras were an important tool for police.
“They tell me it is an important tool for fighting crime and that’s where the conversation starts and finishes,” he said.
