Pasin welcomes $321.4 million investment in the Australian Federal Police

Federal Member for Barker Tony Pasin MP has today welcomed the Coalition Government’s $321.4 million commitment to bolster the capability of the Australian Federal Police (AFP) and strengthen the protection of all Australians.

The funding will provide for an additional 100 intelligence experts, over 100 tactical response and covert surveillance operators, and almost 100 forensic specialists to advance our fight against crime and terrorism.

Mr Pasin said the additional funding represented the largest single funding boost for the AFP’s domestic policing capabilities in a decade.

“No government is more committed to giving our law enforcement agencies the powers and resources they need to protect our communities than the Coalition,” Mr Pasin said.

“We face increasingly sophisticated threats, both on the national security front and from organised criminals, particularly criminals that peddle in the drug trade. We need to have a police force that is able to deal with those threats,” Mr Pasin said.

Minister Keenan said the new experts would fast-track investigations and lock-up criminals sooner.

“These specialists will target areas of priority including terrorism, criminal gangs, drugs, organised crime, cybercrime, fraud and anti-corruption,” Mr Keenan said.

“This will make the AFP a more responsive and robust organisation, with expert skills and world-leading technology at its core.”

This is the first step in the AFP’s 10-year plan to deliver a new vision for the organisation, which will define and map its long-term priorities and ensure it has the tools, skills, training and capabilities needed to protect Australians.

The Coalition Government is committed to ensuring the AFP continues to have every resource and capability necessary to protect our nation and our way of life.

Key elements of the increased funding will comprise:

• Specialist Response Capabilities: Police negotiators, tactical response officers, bomb response technicians and canine resources specialising in drug, cash and explosive detection.
• Covert Physical and Technical Capabilities: Physical surveillance teams, covert online investigators, undercover operation members and police technical teams.
• Forensics and Intelligence Capabilities: Digital forensics, crime scene investigators, firearms and armoury specialists, biometric experts, forensic intelligence analysts, and operational intelligence professionals.

Contact: Charlotte Edmunds – 8531 2466