The biggest recruitment drive in the history of Victoria Police is delivering a record boost to police numbers, with more police officers in the community preventing crime and catching offenders.
New employee data released today by Victoria Police shows there are 1,324 more full time equivalent (FTE) police officers today than there were when the Andrews Labor Government came into government.
Victoria now has 14,476 FTE police officers. This represents a 10 per cent increase in police numbers over the past three-and-a-half years, with more police to continue to roll out over the next four years.
The Labor Government has made a record investment into Victoria Police funding 3,135 new police officers, which is providing for dedicated anti-gangs teams, specialist officers, and also general duty officers, as well as new technology, equipment, capability and intelligence systems.
The Police Academy is full and will remain full for at least the next four years.
Victoria Police is deploying new police when and where they are needed the most, using a new and sophisticated staffing allocation model (SAM). The SAM has been developed by Victoria Police in consultation with the Police Association of Victoria, and endorsed by the Labor Government.
Using the SAM, three hundred new frontline officers have already been deployed to growth areas over the last year. In addition to current FTE numbers, a further 825 frontline and specialist officers, including family violence specialists, will be rolled out by the middle of next year.
The new resources and the strong focus on frontline community policing has helped police to drive down crime across Victoria, with the crime rate decreasing 9.5 per cent in the year to 31 March 2018, according to the latest data from the independent Crime Statistics Agency.
The number of victim reports also decreased by 10.5 per cent over the same period.
There is more work to be done, and the Labor Government continues to work closely with Victoria Police to ensure they have the resources, powers and technology they need to keep the community safe and prevent harm.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Police Lisa Neville
“Our record investment is delivering more police officers out on the streets – and helping police to relentlessly focus on driving down the crime rate across our state.”
“The community is seeing more police in our communities and in specialist roles, to proactively target crime where it’s most needed.”
“There are thousands more police officers on their way – and they will have the equipment, the facilities and the laws they need to fight crime and keep Victorians safe.”
Reviewed 19 August 2020