September 2, 2026 • 6 mins
The new Minister for Organised Crime will take on international crime syndicates targeting New Zealand.
New Zealand First MP Casey Costello will establish a five-member panel of government agency chief executives, co-chaired by the Police Commissioner and Customs Controller.
Costello says it's important for these agencies to co-operate in order to share information and bring down crime syndicates.
"This is about driving accountability and having a single point from a ministerial level to drive that accountability."
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Speaker 1 (00:09):
You're listening to a podcast from Newstalk ZB. Follow this
and our wide range of podcasts now on iHeart Radio.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
New Zealand's First Minister solely responsible for tackling organised crime
has been appointed after an expert advisory group identified it
as our country's number one national security threat. That minister
is Casey Costello and she joins us on the line
right now.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
Minister, afternoon.
Speaker 3 (00:31):
Good afternoon.
Speaker 1 (00:33):
What are the main areas of organised crime we need
to worry about in New Zealand and why is it
getting worse?
Speaker 3 (00:39):
I think the main area that we have to acknowledge that.
Speaker 1 (00:43):
I know. The Minister's been taken down by organised crime.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
We've lost you.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
You've cut out.
Speaker 2 (00:49):
Are you there?
Speaker 3 (00:50):
Can you hear me now?
Speaker 1 (00:51):
We can hear you now. You're back. You were jammed
briefly by organised crime, but you're back.
Speaker 3 (00:57):
Yeah, I'm back. I was just... The thing that we
have to talk about here is that we have to
think of organised crime as the mechanism to make money
and be a little bit commodity agnostic as to what
they're doing to make money. And our approach has always
been on a specific timeline. So whether it's drugs or
(01:18):
whether it's tobacco or whether it's money laundering, we have
to be better connected and joined up to target this
in a holistic way.
Speaker 1 (01:26):
So what can you do now that you couldn't do
before with this new position?
Speaker 3 (01:31):
The challenge is that each of these agencies, which are
doing amazing work, whether it's immigration, IRD, police, customs, they
are doing amazing work, but they're doing it in a
siloed approach. And so what we're trying to do is
ensure that all of these agencies can cooperate better, share
information better, and that we drive legislation that's needed. With
competing priorities, each of the individual agencies can influence everything
(01:56):
that needs to be done. So this is about driving
accountability and having a single point from a ministerial level
to drive that accountability.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
Is this being organised primarily from overseas or internally?
Speaker 3 (02:11):
That is the key point here. We're talking about overseas
international cartels that are driving us. We've always sort of
thought about our own criminal activity within New Zealand, but
the reality is it's shifted now to be driven from
international cartels that will target the weakest part of any country.
And that's why our international relationships become critically important, but
(02:36):
also strengthening our borders. And New Zealand, by its geographic location,
our single border, our single justice system, we should be
the very best in the world at it because we're
much joined up and we have that protection over the distance.
So we're never going to get rid of it, but
we want to make sure New Zealand is the hardest
place for it to take hold.
Speaker 2 (02:57):
Is there one specific group, Minister, that scares you the most,
or are we at the stage now where these international
huge players are working together?
Speaker 3 (03:06):
That's the problem with it. It's like the fingers in
the dike. We block one and something else will come through.
We saw in the first few weeks of this year
14 tonnes of cocaine was intercepted in the Pacific that
was heading to Australia and New Zealand. You know, that's unprecedented,
(03:26):
unheard of levels of drug activity. So when we, you know,
everywhere that you have a legitimate trade link, you will
end up with an illicit market coming in behind it.
So this is about ensuring that we are as connected
up as we can. The MAG report talked about the
fact that they move at the speed of money and
we move at the speed of law. We just have
(03:47):
to be more nimble, more responsive and more proactive.
Speaker 1 (03:52):
What is the biggest weakness in our system right now?
Is it the border? Is it corrupt insiders? Is it
the policing? I don't know, is it the government agencies?
Speaker 3 (04:04):
Ironically, it's our ability to share information amongst ourselves. You know,
the Ministerial Advisory Group was really specific about our private
legislation was more about trying to system under which we
could share information that ended the system, that stopped us
sharing information. I like that. to share information is going
(04:24):
to be a bit of a force.
Speaker 2 (04:26):
Whoa, we're having some terrible problems with that phone line.
I think they're really trying to jam things up, Minister.
You might be going through the Vic Tunnel as well.
Speaker 1 (04:32):
The Comanchero just went past with some kind of jamming device.
We'll keep going, see how we go. A couple of definitions, please,
if you can hear us. What is a central data lake?
And secondly, what is a Phoenix company?
Speaker 3 (04:46):
Central data lake is just a terminal. Sorry, can you
hear me now?
Speaker 2 (04:50):
Yeah, gotcha.
Speaker 1 (04:50):
Nice and clear now.
Speaker 3 (04:51):
Yeah. Central Data Lake is effectively a way of pooling
information so that each agency can access their part that
they're authorized and legally able to access. So we're not duplicating.
That is, you know, in a simple term, that's what
we're talking about is a way of pooling information. And
it is achievable. A Phoenix company is one of the
(05:14):
biggest threats we have in terms of exploited labor is
A company ceases to trade, doesn't pay its taxes, doesn't
pay its employees, and then quickly turns into a new
company relatively quickly. New Zealand is kind of renowned for
the fact that it's pretty easy to set up a
business in New Zealand, which means criminals can then turn
(05:36):
a new company, and that's costing our economy millions and
millions of dollars.
Speaker 1 (05:41):
So what does success look like for you? What is
the most important thing? Is it fewer drugs consumed by Kiwis?
You know, fewer gangs, fewer international syndicates operating. What are
the ideal outcomes?
Speaker 3 (05:56):
Ideal outcomes is that we have the ability to connect
and respond faster and quicker. So, you know, every time
you plug a hole, there will be another penetration. You know,
if we are really effective at stopping drugs at the airport,
it'll come through containers. If we're really effective there, it'll
come through shipping lines. we need to be able to
(06:19):
be as nimble and responsive and ensure that our agencies
have the very best legislation. When we have really good
legislation and the agencies doing this work are going, yeah,
we've got the tools we need, then I can say
we've got success.
Speaker 2 (06:33):
Minister, thank you very much for your time and really
happy that phone line held out in the end, but
really appreciate you coming on.
Speaker 3 (06:41):
Thanks very much.
Speaker 2 (06:42):
That is Minister Casey Costello, who is now the Minister
solely in charge of dealing with organised crime in New Zealand.
You're listening to a podcast from Newstalk ZB. Follow this
and our wide range of podcasts now on iHeart Radio.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
New Zealand's First Minister solely responsible for tackling organised crime
has been appointed after an expert advisory group identified it
as our country's number one national security threat. That minister
is Casey Costello and she joins us on the line
right now.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
Minister, afternoon.
Speaker 3 (00:31):
Good afternoon.
Speaker 1 (00:33):
What are the main areas of organised crime we need
to worry about in New Zealand and why is it
getting worse?
Speaker 3 (00:39):
I think the main area that we have to acknowledge that.
Speaker 1 (00:43):
I know. The Minister's been taken down by organised crime.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
We've lost you.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
You've cut out.
Speaker 2 (00:49):
Are you there?
Speaker 3 (00:50):
Can you hear me now?
Speaker 1 (00:51):
We can hear you now. You're back. You were jammed
briefly by organised crime, but you're back.
Speaker 3 (00:57):
Yeah, I'm back. I was just... The thing that we
have to talk about here is that we have to
think of organised crime as the mechanism to make money
and be a little bit commodity agnostic as to what
they're doing to make money. And our approach has always
been on a specific timeline. So whether it's drugs or
(01:18):
whether it's tobacco or whether it's money laundering, we have
to be better connected and joined up to target this
in a holistic way.
Speaker 1 (01:26):
So what can you do now that you couldn't do
before with this new position?
Speaker 3 (01:31):
The challenge is that each of these agencies, which are
doing amazing work, whether it's immigration, IRD, police, customs, they
are doing amazing work, but they're doing it in a
siloed approach. And so what we're trying to do is
ensure that all of these agencies can cooperate better, share
information better, and that we drive legislation that's needed. With
competing priorities, each of the individual agencies can influence everything
(01:56):
that needs to be done. So this is about driving
accountability and having a single point from a ministerial level
to drive that accountability.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
Is this being organised primarily from overseas or internally?
Speaker 3 (02:11):
That is the key point here. We're talking about overseas
international cartels that are driving us. We've always sort of
thought about our own criminal activity within New Zealand, but
the reality is it's shifted now to be driven from
international cartels that will target the weakest part of any country.
And that's why our international relationships become critically important, but
(02:36):
also strengthening our borders. And New Zealand, by its geographic location,
our single border, our single justice system, we should be
the very best in the world at it because we're
much joined up and we have that protection over the distance.
So we're never going to get rid of it, but
we want to make sure New Zealand is the hardest
place for it to take hold.
Speaker 2 (02:57):
Is there one specific group, Minister, that scares you the most,
or are we at the stage now where these international
huge players are working together?
Speaker 3 (03:06):
That's the problem with it. It's like the fingers in
the dike. We block one and something else will come through.
We saw in the first few weeks of this year
14 tonnes of cocaine was intercepted in the Pacific that
was heading to Australia and New Zealand. You know, that's unprecedented,
(03:26):
unheard of levels of drug activity. So when we, you know,
everywhere that you have a legitimate trade link, you will
end up with an illicit market coming in behind it.
So this is about ensuring that we are as connected
up as we can. The MAG report talked about the
fact that they move at the speed of money and
we move at the speed of law. We just have
(03:47):
to be more nimble, more responsive and more proactive.
Speaker 1 (03:52):
What is the biggest weakness in our system right now?
Is it the border? Is it corrupt insiders? Is it
the policing? I don't know, is it the government agencies?
Speaker 3 (04:04):
Ironically, it's our ability to share information amongst ourselves. You know,
the Ministerial Advisory Group was really specific about our private
legislation was more about trying to system under which we
could share information that ended the system, that stopped us
sharing information. I like that. to share information is going
(04:24):
to be a bit of a force.
Speaker 2 (04:26):
Whoa, we're having some terrible problems with that phone line.
I think they're really trying to jam things up, Minister.
You might be going through the Vic Tunnel as well.
Speaker 1 (04:32):
The Comanchero just went past with some kind of jamming device.
We'll keep going, see how we go. A couple of definitions, please,
if you can hear us. What is a central data lake?
And secondly, what is a Phoenix company?
Speaker 3 (04:46):
Central data lake is just a terminal. Sorry, can you
hear me now?
Speaker 2 (04:50):
Yeah, gotcha.
Speaker 1 (04:50):
Nice and clear now.
Speaker 3 (04:51):
Yeah. Central Data Lake is effectively a way of pooling
information so that each agency can access their part that
they're authorized and legally able to access. So we're not duplicating.
That is, you know, in a simple term, that's what
we're talking about is a way of pooling information. And
it is achievable. A Phoenix company is one of the
(05:14):
biggest threats we have in terms of exploited labor is
A company ceases to trade, doesn't pay its taxes, doesn't
pay its employees, and then quickly turns into a new
company relatively quickly. New Zealand is kind of renowned for
the fact that it's pretty easy to set up a
business in New Zealand, which means criminals can then turn
(05:36):
a new company, and that's costing our economy millions and
millions of dollars.
Speaker 1 (05:41):
So what does success look like for you? What is
the most important thing? Is it fewer drugs consumed by Kiwis?
You know, fewer gangs, fewer international syndicates operating. What are
the ideal outcomes?
Speaker 3 (05:56):
Ideal outcomes is that we have the ability to connect
and respond faster and quicker. So, you know, every time
you plug a hole, there will be another penetration. You know,
if we are really effective at stopping drugs at the airport,
it'll come through containers. If we're really effective there, it'll
come through shipping lines. we need to be able to
(06:19):
be as nimble and responsive and ensure that our agencies
have the very best legislation. When we have really good
legislation and the agencies doing this work are going, yeah,
we've got the tools we need, then I can say
we've got success.
Speaker 2 (06:33):
Minister, thank you very much for your time and really
happy that phone line held out in the end, but
really appreciate you coming on.
Speaker 3 (06:41):
Thanks very much.
Speaker 2 (06:42):
That is Minister Casey Costello, who is now the Minister
solely in charge of dealing with organised crime in New Zealand.
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