The Minister for Police Stuart Nash as said that there has been a record growth in the numbers and the diversity of the frontline police ranks.

The Minister was speaking at a graduation ceremony of new police recruits in Porirua.

Stuart Nash today presented awards to new constables from Wing 339 at the Royal New Zealand Police College in Porirua. It is the 37^th Police recruit wing to graduate since the Coalition Government took office.

“The strong drive to recruit and train Police has resulted in 2,255 new officers joining the frontline since we took office,” Mr Nash said.

“Combined with record low attrition, the size of the Police constabulary workforce has grown by more than 1,300 officers since the start of the 2017/18 financial year. There are now around 10,147 fulltime equivalent Police.

“This amounts to a 14.8 percent increase in frontline Police over three years. Attrition is tracking at around two percent annually and is one of the lowest in the wider state sector.

“The rollout of new Police has smashed all sorts of recruitment records and seen a historic return to Police training wings in Auckland for the first time in 40 years

Increase in diversity in police ranks

Diversity in frontline Police ranks has been enhanced by rapid growth in officer numbers over the past three years.

“This marks a generational shift in Police recruitment, training and deployment. It has changed the face of modern Police and created a more diverse organisation that better reflects the communities it serves,” Mr Nash said.

“There are more women, more Maori, Pasifika and Asian Police officers on the frontline. They bring a diverse range of skills and competencies to modern Policing, reflecting their age and backgrounds. Many of the new recruits speak multiple languages and already have impressive careers in other community service roles behind them.

“Almost half of the growth in the Police workforce is made up of female officers. There are now 22 per cent more Maori officers, 41 per cent more Pasifika officers, and 85 per cent more Asian Police officers than at the start of the 17/18 FY.

“We are training Police at more than double the rate of previous years. We are keeping up the momentum to improve community safety, enhance the wellbeing of New Zealanders, and grow a more diverse and inclusive Police organisation,” Mr Nash said.