Minister opens new Police National Command Centre

Police Minister Anne Tolley has officially opened a new National Command and Coordination Centre in Wellington, which will use the latest technology to tackle and prevent crime and to keep New Zealanders safe.

The Command Centre, based at Police National Headquarters, will provide staff with real-time information on emerging issues across the country.

This will allow Police to deploy staff more effectively in response to developing events, so that strategic operational decisions can be coordinated.

It will also support Police to act proactively before issues develop, to help prevent crime.

“Police have helped reduce crimes by over 20 per cent in the last four years, but they are not resting on their laurels and are determined to get even better results for our communities,” says Mrs Tolley.

“The rollout of smartphones and tablets to frontline staff has allowed them to access and input important information and deliver over half a million additional frontline crime prevention hours a year.

“This new Command Centre will be able to gather immediate information from national operations all over the country, to help coordinate events and make better-informed decisions to support staff on the ground.

“The Command Centre has already been used successfully to coordinate national operations, and it will continue to evolve as new technology develops.”