4. Question No. 4—PoliceVANUSHI WALTERS (Labour—Upper Harbour) to the Minister of PoliceQuestion No. 4—Police4. VANUSHI WALTERS (Labour—Upper Harbour) to the Minister of Police: Talofa lava Mr Speaker. What progress has been made on the Government's target of 1800 additional police officers?Hon GINNY ANDERSEN (Minister of Police): In 2017 the newly elected Labour Government committed to a target of 1800 additional police on the front line. New Zealanders told us that they wanted more police in our communities and we committed to delivering that. So it was with great pride today that I attended the graduation along with the Prime Minister of Wing 366 this morning which now sees police with 10700 officers—an increase of 21 percent since 2017. With the recent commitment to maintaining an ongoing ratio of one police officer to every 480 New Zealanders the public can be assured that under a Labour Government there won't be a cut to the number of officers keeping our communities safe.Vanushi Walters: Minister where are these additional police being deployed?Hon GINNY ANDERSEN: Let me be clear: every single one of our 12 police districts in New Zealand is better resourced and better staffed today than when we came into office in 2017. The most significant increases in police numbers have been in Eastern District with 24 percent; Northland 23 percent increase; Bay of Plenty with a 20 percent increase; and with other districts right around the country receiving at a minimum an 11 percent increase in front-line staff. We've also significantly bolstered the number of cops working to fight organised crime and gangs which includes both centralised and specialist ability that can be readily deployed to other districts.Vanushi Walters: And how has the diversity of the constabulary changed?Hon GINNY ANDERSEN: More good news: we knew it wasn't just enough to increase the number of police; we needed to work hard to ensure our police service reflected those communities they serve. That's why I'm incredibly proud that we've had a thousand additional policewomen join which represents an increase of 61 percent since 2017. We've seen more Māori officers increase by 40 percent since 2017 Pasifika officers increase by 83 percent and Asian officers increase by 157 percent since 2017. I want to thank every single member of our police service for their commitment to their country and especially to welcome those new recruits who have joined since 2017.Vanushi Walters: Minister what other work is supporting the police?Hon GINNY ANDERSEN: We know it's not enough to simply have more police on the ground in the communities; we need the right rules and the right tools in order to do their jobs well. That's exactly why alongside the 1800 additional police we've also invested in the tactical response model rolled out nationally. We've also invested an additional $94 million into tackling gangs and organised crime and we've changed the law to crack down on gang profits seize and impound vehicles and enable targeted powers during gang conflicts. This Government is committed to supporting our police; unlike the austerity of the last Government that saw a decline under real police numbers.