Customs Minister, Casey Costello says Budget 2025 will include boosted funding for New Zealand Customs Service efforts to protect our borders.
The funding includes $21 million in operating expenditure, $5.5 million in capital funded through Budget 2025 plus an additional $8.2 million from third party levies and fees.
“Customs is doing a great job stopping illicit drugs entering the country, but New Zealand is increasingly being targeted by organised crime groups. The Government is committed to ensuring law and order, so it is investing in the tools and capacity agencies need to meet growing challenges,” Minister Costello said.
“Transnational and serious organised crime threats are growing worldwide. These groups are increasingly targeting the Pacific and New Zealand, which has some of the world’s highest prices for illicit drugs like methamphetamine and cocaine.”
In 2014, Customs seized 55kg of methamphetamine in the entire year. Last year Customs stopped, on average, 90kg of meth every week.
In the past two years, Customs and its offshore partners stopped nearly 8.5 tonnes of meth from entering the country.
“We know what works to stop the threat from organised crime, and harm from drugs. Decisions at Budget 2025 mean that Customs will have $35 million more over four years to help to do this job even better,” said Ms Costello.
“The extra funding will increase the number of staff protecting our border as well as increasing Customs technological capability.”
The funding will focus on three areas:
- Targeting those involved in lower-quantity, high-frequency drug smuggling such as through international mail or airports;
- Improving supply chain security and targeting the ‘trusted insiders’ who use these links to help smuggle drugs;
- Extending Customs presence overseas, with an additional liaison officer to support investigations and information sharing with global enforcement and border partners.
“While Customs is dealing with increasingly large-scale drug smuggling attempts, it also needs more capacity to investigate and prosecute the smuggling that sends low quantities of drugs in high volumes through international mail and air routes. This new funding will provide that,” said the Minister.
The new spending will provide Customs funding for up to 60 additional roles over the next four years, including investigations and prosecutions, intelligence, and border operations, she said.
