Summarised by Centrist
The Northern Territory Police Force has been in multiple New Zealand centres this month, targeting experienced officers with housing support and salaries that begin at about A$140,000 after training.
Acting Superintendent Serge Bouma said recruitment has accelerated since COVID, adding that the Territory has hired 87 experienced officers since early 2023. “Somewhere between 50 and 60” of those are from New Zealand, he told 1News.
Bouma said the incentives are clear and openly disclosed. “We hold info sessions at various locations… where we lay everything out on the table,” he said. Housing is the biggest draw, with either a department-leased property or a tax-free allowance “just shy of $32,000 a year over and above your normal income.”
New Zealand Police confirm more than 670 vetting requests from Australian jurisdictions have been lodged in the past two years, and at least 212 Kiwi officers have resigned to take jobs across the Tasman. Only 16 have recently contacted police about returning home.
Police Commissioner Richard Chambers said he has questioned his Australian counterparts directly. “Why do you come to New Zealand to recruit my colleagues?’ And his response… was, ‘because you produce great police officers’. Well, I can’t argue with that.”
“By the time Christmas arrives, we will have recruited and graduated nearly 800 new constables,” said Chambers. He said police will also travel to Australia soon “to help them come home.”
