Be honest about police Budget

Police Minister Anne Tolley should be honest about the front line effect of this year's Budget, Labour's Police spokesperson Kris Faafoi said today.

"A zero increase for police means it must fund inflationary cost rises, a wage round negotiation and competency service increments (CSI) from the same pot of money it has operated on in recent years.

"That is going to put immense pressure on the delivery of front line services," Kris Faafoi said.

"At the Law and Order Select Committee’s financial review of police earlier this year, police top brass projected CSI increases would cost $170 million over four years, and a 3 per cent wage increase would cost around $300 million over the same period.

"That means police are being forced to find savings of around $120 million per annum.

"So essentially the Minister is fooling nobody - this is a Budget cut,” Kris Faafoi said.

"Front line officers are worried. They are telling me they are stretched, and resourcing is becoming an issue.

"Police Association President Greg O'Connor, put it well in this month's Police Association publication when he said; 'There is no fat, as the Martin review found in 1999 and every review has since confirmed’.

"Mr O'Connor went on to say that 'the Government will end up wearing the blame from unhappy voters once our own equivalent of a production crisis - service reduction - starts to affect them’.

"The Government knows what is coming. But it is trying to play it down by saying that 125 non- sworn staff will lose their jobs. That's not the truth - and the Police Minister should be honest about that,” Kris Faafoi said.