00:00 High profile knife crimes across the nation spurring a government crackdown.
00:07 From Carousel to Bondi, the images have been confronting.
00:11 And that's why my government is doing something about it.
00:15 Under the proposed laws, police could search people in designated areas
00:19 with hand-held metal detectors, known as WANDs,
00:22 without needing reasonable suspicion of an offence.
00:25 Western Australians who are doing the right thing have nothing to worry about.
00:29 On top of permanent search areas in entertainment precincts,
00:32 temporary knife-wanding areas could be declared in any public space with no notice.
00:38 You will not know when or where the police have declared a knife-wanding area.
00:43 They could be anywhere, anytime.
00:45 The laws are modelled on Queensland's Jack's Law, named after 17-year-old Jack Beasley,
00:50 who was fatally stabbed in 2019 on the Gold Coast.
00:54 But knife crime is trending down in WA.
00:57 So in 2006 there were 13.2 knife crimes per 100,000 population.
01:02 Last year was 7.5, so we're nearly 50% down on knife crimes in WA.
01:07 That is a good thing.
01:08 That's backed by WA health data showing a decrease in patients admitted to public hospitals
01:13 for knife assaults per capita over the last decade,
01:16 prompting the question why the new laws are needed.
01:20 There's a diminishing number per capita, but what you've seen is high profile incidents.
01:25 That's not, in my experience or view, a sound basis for the introduction of a criminal law.
01:33 Concerns some groups will be targeted disproportionately.
01:37 Such as homeless people, First Nations people, people living with mental illness.
01:43 Police say they will only target people who pose a potential threat
01:47 and will not discriminate based on race or other factors.
01:50 But anyone who refuses a WAND scan could be jailed for a year or fined $12,000.
01:56 [BLANK_AUDIO]
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