Liberal party pledges mandatory minimum sentences for meth dealers | ELECTION 2017

Premier Colin Barnett said a re-elected Liberal government would introduce a mandatory prison sentence for anyone convicted of selling meth.

Anyone convicted of dealing less than 10 grams of the drug would serve a minimum of one year in prison while those convicted of selling more than 200 grams would risk life in prison, but be forced to serve a minimum of 15 years.

Mr Barnett said his party would build two new wings at Casuarina prison to cope with the expected increase of dealers and pledged an extra $30 million to hire more judges and prosecutors to cope with the workload.

Shadow attorney general John Quigley said Labor’s policy of increasing the maximum penalty for meth traffickers to life in prison was intended to “to cut the head off the snake” of the meth problem.

Although Labor would not introduce mandatory prison for dealers, he said he would “use the attorney general’s reserve powers to appeal to the judiciary to respect the will of the Parliament when sentencing meth traffickers” if sentences handed out by judges were too lenient.

Bunbury Liberal candidate Ian Morison welcomed the Premier’s announcement.

“The mandatory minimums are very severe, you could be dealing in only one gram of meth and you’ll go the jail for a year,” he said.

“If you’re dealing an amount above 200 grams you’ll face life in prison.

“These are big, big penalties and they’re not the window dressing Labor has done – that’s window dressing because judges almost never give the maximum.”

Mr Morison, a lawyer, said he was was skeptical about Labor’s plan to complain to the judiciary if penalties were not severe enough.

“I think it’s a bit of a desperate proposal, because we have a director of public prosecutions and it would seem they’re trying to take matters out of the hands of our prosecutors, and I think it is unfortunate they’re trying to float the idea that politicians appeal the sentences,” he said.

“What you need is a good police force and a good court system and once you’ve got that you can rely on them to do their jobs and you shouldn’t be interfering in the prosecution and appeal process.”

As part of the package, 20 new rehabilitation beds would be made available in the South West, more than in any other regional area.

“Bearing in mind there’s 85 new beds in total, Bunbury has done pretty well out of that, in fact there’s only 30 in the metro area,” he said.

Labor Bunbury candidate Don Punch said WA Labor wanted meth dealers in prison for life.

“WA Labor will bring in the toughest sentencing regime for meth traffickers in the country while providing the support addicts need to rid their lives of this terrible drug,” he said.

“This is how we'll get on top of WA's meth crisis.

“The Liberal party have been in office for a long time and the problem has been getting worse and worse. 

“They’ve had eight and half years to do something about it and people are very cynical that they’re making announcements only now there’s a election.

Mr Punch said Labor would not only toughen penalties to reduce supply of meth but would build a rehabilitation facility in the greater Bunbury area to lessen demand.

“Detox isn’t the only answer, we’re also supporting groups like Doors Wide Open and we’ll be giving people the opportunity to reintegrate into society,” he said.

“We’ll be putting out a clear education message, that will help to tackle the issue on the demand side.

“It’s a mix of detoxification, rehabilitation and reintegration into society.”