The Victorian Greens have announced plans to establish a New York City-inspired Office of Community Safety & Crime Prevention, after Mamdani’s policies helped New York record its safest summer on record. The Greens Office of Community Safety & Crime Prevention would take a whole-of-government, coordinated approach, bringing funding for prevention and crisis outreach under one roof, just like they have in New York.
The Greens plan for community safety:
- Establish a dedicated Office of Community Safety & Crime Prevention
- Funding for 24/7 crisis outreach teams of health and social workers in key communities, trained to de-escalate and connect people with support
- Investing in prevention programs proven to work, using data from across government departments to put resources where they’re needed most
- Big investments in programs to prevent crime before it happens – with investment in the mental health, addiction and homelessness services that have been sorely neglected by Labor and Liberal Governments
- Doubling public housing and significant investment in other programs to reduce inequality – which is one of the key drivers of crime
Victoria currently takes a disconnected and uncoordinated approach to prevention with 167 separate crime prevention programs spread across 10 different government departments. A recent VAGO report into youth crime prevention found that the small amounts the Government has put into prevention have no clear targets or goals to ensure money is going where it actually works.
The Greens proposal draws on the new Office of Community Safety established by NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani that takes a whole-of-government approach. Since the NYC Office was established in March the city has experienced the safest summer for violent crime ever recorded.
The Greens would invest $1 billion into community safety to establish the Office of Community Safety & Crime Prevention to fund 24/7 crisis outreach, prevention programs, and provide additional funding for frontline mental health, alcohol and other drug treatment and homelessness services.
This is on top of the Greens pledge to double public housing and significant investments in other programs that reduce inequality – which is one of the key drivers of crime.
As stated by the Leader of the Victorian Greens, Ellen Sandell:
“Everyone deserves to feel safe, but Labor and the Liberals have spent decades competing over who can sound the toughest while cutting the programs that actually keep people safe.
“It’s clear that we need to do something different. That’s why the Greens will invest in what actually works.
“We will create an Office of Community Safety & Crime Prevention to coordinate a whole-of-government approach – investing in prevention programs proven to work and putting 24/7 statewide crisis outreach teams of health and social workers in our communities, trained to de-escalate and connect people with support.”
“Taking a whole-of-government approach that invests in preventing crime has worked all around the world. It worked in NYC and it can work in Victoria too.”
As stated by the Victorian Greens justice spokesperson, Katherine Copsey:
“The Greens will invest $1 billion into what’s proven to reduce crime – putting trained health and community workers on the ground, investing in youth programs and early intervention, and properly funding the mental health, addiction and homelessness services that have been stretched to breaking point.
“Being serious about crime means being serious about preventing it. Labor is spending millions making it easier to warehouse people in jail and expanding prisons and youth detention. The Greens would invest that money earlier, in the communities and services that can stop harm from happening in the first place.”
As stated by the Greens candidate for Prahran, Angelica Di Camillo:
“People I speak to across Prahran want to feel safe, but they’re tired of politicians pretending the only answer is more punishment after something has already gone wrong.
“They want a different approach, one that actually prevents harm, invests in young people and makes sure someone experiencing homelessness or a mental health crisis can get help before things escalate.
“People want to see more support on the ground. They want mental health workers, youth workers and homelessness services properly funded and available when people need them. We’ve seen this work in New York, and it can work in Prahran too.”
