It pays to be united

COUNCIL rangers and parking officers are being increasingly abused, bashed, threatened with knives and guns and having their cars vandalised.

By Sharon Labi
The Sunday Telegraph

n a bid to counter the rising tide of violence in New South Wales, the Local Government Association (LGA) has called on the State Governmentto toughen laws to ensure attackers are prosecuted and face harsher penalties.

The LGA decided last week to lobby the government to make sure rangers and parking officers are covered by the Crimes Act.

The move, proposed by Kiama Council, comes as the United Services Union (USU) launches a state-wide survey on the extent of abuse and violence and demands better protection.

"We're aware of some people having their teeth knocked in, they've sustained ongoing injuries from knife attacks, some (have been) threatened with guns, some have had their families threatened, had rocks thrown at their houses, their vehicles attacked," USU research officer Lyn Fraser said.

"It's a very, very serious problem and people have the right to go about their work without those threats of aggression or violence."

Officer Michael McCall was bashed by two men in Parramatta over a parking ticket - the sixth attack on staff in a year.

LGA president and North Sydney mayor Genia McCaffery said the number of incidents was "absolutely" on the rise; a parent tried to run down a ranger outside a school in her area this year.

"I think people have less patience and want to be angry and I think Sydney's a pretty stressful place to live," she said.

"There isn't adequate public transport. I think also we should have a little look at ourselves because there are plenty of places in the world where there are fewer parking spots than in Sydney and people don't behave the way they do in Sydney."

Councils want courts to take account of the victim's role as public officials when sentencing offenders.