Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Waste Watch Anthony Roberts today called on part-time Police Minister John Watkins to abandon a $225,000 plan to beef up his media spin team and instead divert the resources to the starved frontline.

The NSW Police Media Unit has advertised for two jobs costing taxpayers $225,000:

• Manager, Media Unit costing taxpayers $147,514
• Media Liaison Officer costing taxpayers $75,914

"This says a lot about the priorities of the Iemma-Costa Labor Government, instead of focussing on increasing resources for frontline police officers, the part-time Police Minister wants to spin past the problems," Mr Roberts said.

"John Watkins should be putting what little time he has available for the Police portfolio into re-instating the 650 police officers Iemma-Costa Labor has cut – not hiring more spin doctors," he said.

"During his time as Police Minister the first time around, John Watkins increased the staff in the Ministry for Police by 20, yet cut police numbers and failed to deliver of a crucial promise from the Redfern riot report to purchase a mobile command vehicle.

"After 12 years of excuses, Iemma-Costa Labor still hasn't learnt it's more important to invest in frontline services.

"Morris Iemma and John Watkins have got their priorities wrong. Instead of putting services into the frontline, they further bloat the bureaucracy and rely on spin.

"The Iemma-Costa Labor Government is only ever concerned about fixing the headlines, not the problem. Labor's had long enough – the time for excuses is over.

"NSW deserves higher standards, better services and balanced budgets," he said.