Media Release

For Immediate Release
Thursday 8 September 2016

Rise in child abuse investigations reflect pressure – Police Association

“Child abuse investigation has been a very heavily audited and scrutinised area of policing since the IPCA inquiry in 2007,” Police Association President Greg O’Connor said today.

Mr O’Connor was referring to media articles today which pointed out the considerable workload increase and the increase in the number of victims in this area.

“Despite the emphasis on, and resourcing of, this area, there is now clearly still a considerable backlog of files and pressure on staff. Experience has shown that other areas of policing which do not receive the same attention were unable to meet demand and problems have arisen,” Mr O’Connor said.

“The Association fears that the new emphasis on burglaries, while to be commended, will simply result in resources being taken from other areas such as organised crime and drug investigations, and New Zealand will pay the price in years to come.

“There simply must be more than a commitment for more staff in the future – there needs to be funding so the process of filling these gaps can begin now.

“Any comfort that may be gained from promises of more staff will quickly dissipate as more and more problems emerge,” Mr O’Connor said.

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