The coalition Government is working to quell confusion over whether it’s amending its commitment to training at least 500 new frontline police officers within its first two years in office.
The uncertainty won’t be welcomed by the numerous east Auckland business owners and workers whose premises have been targeted in recent years by brazen thieves.
Among those impacted by robbery, smash-and-grab or ram-raid burglaries locally are jewellery and liquor stores, a fruit shop, dairies, a sushi shop, petrol stations, a home appliance store, a pizza restaurant, a health food store, a vape store, a book shop, and the Ormiston Town Centre.
One jewellery store at the Botany Town Centre was robbed by armed offenders multiple times during 2022.
The policy to add no fewer than 500 more frontline police officers was announced during last year’s general election campaign, as the National, ACT and NZ First accused the previous Labour Government of being “soft on crime”.
It features in the coalition agreement between the National Party and New Zealand First.
When Labour Party police spokesperson Ginny Andersen questioned Police Minister Mark Mitchell about the policy in Parliament on January 30, he said the Government’s plan “is to deliver 500 additional police officers over the term of this Government, which is three years”.
“We’ve been very clear we understand the challenges around that, because, as the incoming Government, we discovered it was difficult to fill existing recruit wings, that the Australians are here recruiting our police officers, and we’ve got lots of senior police officers coming up to retirement,” Mitchell said.
Andersen asked Mitchell if he was “walking back on” the coalition agreement that states the Government will deliver an additional 500 frontline police officers within two years.
Mitchell replied: “No, I’m saying that we have, as the incoming Government, committed to 500 additional police officers over the term of this Government, which, yes, is three years …”
He said there were “big issues” relating to recruiting new police officers and it is apparent police are under “severe financial pressure because of the actions of the previous Government”.
“We’ve been very clear we’re going to deliver world-class frontline services, and the police, like every other agency, is asked to look at their corporate services and their back office services to see whether or not cuts can be achieved.”
The following day, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said during a radio interview Mitchell was wrong when he told Parliament the policy to deliver 500 extra frontline police officers couldn’t be achieved within two years.
Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters also later said during a radio interview the coalition Government had not given up on the target of training at least 500 new frontline officers within two years.
Last year Australia’s Queensland Police Service launched an aggressive recruitment campaign in New Zealand to entice Kiwi officers across the Tasman.
A newspaper advertisement that ran as part of the campaign said police officers in New Zealand would receive a “resettlement bonus” of up to U$20,000 by moving to work in Queensland.
