Ginny Andersen: Labour's Police spokesperson on NZ Police leaving for Australia

Labour says a mix of push and pull factors are responsible for Australia poaching New Zealand cops. 

1News reports 144 New Zealand police officers left for Australia in the past year.  

Police Commissioner Richard Chambers says we can't realistically keep up with the pay and incentives being offered. 

Labour's Police spokesperson Ginny Andersen told Ryan Bridge a major push factor is the Government's failure to deliver on its 500 additional police officers. 

She says there's more pressure for frontline police, with less support and pay compared to Australia. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Police admitting that they just basically and it's not a
surprising admission given the numbers that are the eye watering
numbers that are on offer, but they just can't compete
with the money on offer across the ditch.

Speaker 2 (00:10):
It's frustrating, frankly, and I've told my police commissioner colleagues
across Australia that I would rather they didn't come to
New Zealand and poach my people.

Speaker 1 (00:20):
One hundred and forty four cops left for Australia in
the past year, and now one in three resignations is
linked to the move. Jennie Anderson, as Labour's police spokesperson,
joined US Live this morning and.

Speaker 3 (00:28):
A good morning, Good morning mane. How are you.

Speaker 1 (00:31):
I'm very well, thank you. So what are we going
to pay them more? And how much does that cost?

Speaker 3 (00:36):
Well, it looks like cost of living is really pushing
not just can you we've the police way and it's
said for us who want to have people staying here
because they're a family and we love them. So it's
a real loss in New Zealand to have so many
one hundred and forty four I think you said, wasn't
it in the past.

Speaker 1 (00:52):
Year is a lot totally and how do you get
them back?

Speaker 3 (00:57):
Well, I think these push and pull factors, the several
push facts. I mean, one of the factors is the
fact that the government has failed to deliver on the
five hundred that they promised, and it just puts more
pressure on the front line. So I think we've seen
more pressure on police on the front line, less support,
whether that support staff or it support in pull factors,

(01:17):
which is great pay, so pay is definitely right.

Speaker 1 (01:20):
Part of the factor is labor promising to pay them more.

Speaker 3 (01:24):
Well, one thing that I think needs looking at, and
I'm prepared to take a look at that if we
to form the government, is that police currently have twenty
one steps in your pay, so wages are not only
not keeping up with inflation, but it means it takes
police much longer than any other profession to reach the
top of their payscale. And so while police might start

(01:44):
earning more a bit more than say nurses or teachers,
it doesn't take very long three or four years, and
then those professions are any more than police. So I
think the fact that there are twenty one steps in
that payscale, that's a factor that needs to be looked at.

Speaker 1 (01:58):
Okay, and so you'll look at that, but it doesn't
necessarily mean you're going to pay them more, just maybe
more sooner.

Speaker 3 (02:05):
Well, what sounds like the Commission has sort of given
up on that sense. They've paid what thirty five thousand
dollars and got advertising campaign got two people back. But
we think that it's the campaign that the Police Association
currently have in place, which is repay the risk and
acknowledging the risk that police take every day needs to

(02:25):
be rememorated. The part of that is that there's too
many steps in your pay scale that police take too
long to earn as much as similar professions in New Zealand,
and so we think that that's a good thing that
we need to take a look at to say that
you should be earning more earlier on in your career.

Speaker 1 (02:41):
How interesting what's happening overseas, isn't it over in the UK?
With performing over in Australia with one nation?

Speaker 3 (02:48):
Yes, very interesting times and again that just puts more
pressure on frontline police. Off situations are becoming difficult in
public So that's another factor as well that you need
to be considering if you're going.

Speaker 1 (02:59):
Over okay, all right now, Jenny, Thank you Jenny Anderson
from Labor. For more from Early Edition with Ryan Bridge,
listen live to News Talks it Be from five am weekdays,
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