HOBSONS Bay's new top cop, Inspector Bill Mathers, says tackling violent crime and road safety are his priorities.

"It's the same everywhere for policing; our issues are community issues so it's looking at how we can work with community agencies to come up with not only immediate responses but long-term strategies."

Inspector Mathers took over the job after a five-month stint in Brimbank.

Crime statistics for Hobsons Bay released earlier this month showed drug offences rose 10.7per cent in the past 12 months, but Inspector Mathers saw this as a positive.

"From an enforcement point of view, an increase in drug activity is actually a good thing because it means our members are out there processing people for drug offences.

"Again, it's a community issue because these days more people are taking illegal drugs and we have to work with them to say, 'Look, apart from it being illegal, it's

also actually quite harmful and it's causing a lot of

damage to the community'."

Armed robberies, which rose by 24per cent in the municipality, were another area of concern right across the state, Inspector Mathers said.

"We will be looking at how we can decrease that by changing the environment; by smarter police work in terms of how we can make the public safer and by making them more aware of being safer in public places."

Inspector Mathers said police would work with Hobsons Bay Council, the Migrant Resource Centre, youth agencies and the Department of Human Services to develop programs dealing with young people, who were over-represented in crime figures.

He said Hobsons Bay also had its share of youth-related problems such as bullying, drugs and alcohol abuse.

"We need to work out a way to alter the culture to show that it is not acceptable for people to assault each other or commit an armed robbery. People have to self-regulate."

Inspector Mathers said recent programs run by police, such as operation safe stations, would continue.