The shopping centre industry has welcomed the announcement by NSW Premier Chris Minns and the NSW Government to introduce laws allowing NSW Police to wand people for weapons in a range of ‘crowded places’ including shopping centres. Proposed laws will also see the sale of knives banned to people under 18.
The Shopping Centre Council of Australia (SCCA) has engaged with the NSW Government and NSW Police on community safety and security issues for a long period of time.
“We welcome the NSW Premier’s announcement to introduce tougher knife crime laws and have long expressed our support for effective measures to increase community safety in crowded places including shopping centres,” Nardi said.
“The measures proposed by the NSW Premier are a step in the right direction, however there is detail we are keen to work on particularly on what constitutes a ‘weapons related offence’ and the proposed timeframes of ‘authority’, to ensure these laws work seamlessly and are effective for the community.
“The SCCA has long advocated for tougher laws to deal with the increasing levels of retail crime.”
The SCCA has also welcomed the release of the Queensland Government’s Community Safety Plan which includes expanding Jack’s Law to enable wanding in shopping centres.
“We have been engaged with the Queensland Government on their crime related law reform including laws to prohibit the sale of knives to people under 18, and the recent announcement to extend Jack’s Law into shopping centres.
“We look forward to close engagement from the NSW Government and NSW Police to help deliver a safer community and reduce retail and youth crime,” Nardi said.
The SCCA is the national industry group for major shopping centre owners and operators, including Scentre Group, the owner of Westfield shopping centres, including Westfield Bondi.
On 13 April 2024, Westfield Bondi was the location of an attack that resulted in six innocent people tragically losing their lives, including one of Scentre Group’s security team members.
The Group continues to work closely with local police at all its Westfield destinations and is operating with increased levels of security across the portfolio.
