NZ Launches Stronger All-of-Government Plan to Combat Organised Crime

The Government’s overarching ambition is bold: to make New Zealand the hardest place in the world for organised crime to operate.

 

A comprehensive new all-of-government framework to combat Transnational, Serious and Organised Crime (TSOC) has been unveiled today by Associate Police Minister Casey Costello. The initiative marks a major shift in how New Zealand coordinates agencies, intelligence, and community-based efforts in response to increasingly sophisticated criminal networks.

“We are at a critical time in the fight against transnational and organised crime,” Minister Costello said. “New Zealand and our Pacific neighbours are being increasingly targeted by organised criminal groups, who are using new technologies and new ways of operating.”

A Unified Approach to a Growing Threat

The new TSOC Strategy and Action Plan is designed to strengthen coordination across agencies, streamline intelligence sharing, and address the social harms caused by organised criminal groups. The Government’s overarching ambition is bold: to make New Zealand the hardest place in the world for organised crime to operate.

Organised criminal activity in New Zealand continues to evolve, driven by encrypted communication tools, offshore criminal alliances, enhanced money-laundering networks, and the growing digital economy. These developments have expanded the reach and resilience of criminal organisations, requiring a more integrated national response.

Key Priorities of the TSOC Action Plan

The new plan sets out several significant priorities to immediately strengthen the national response:

• Evaluating options for a dedicated TSOC agency to provide clear leadership, accountability, and coordination across the public sector.

• Developing a modern cross-agency data-sharing system, ensuring intelligence moves rapidly and securely between government organisations.

• Implementing the full package of measures addressing methamphetamine harm, including prevention, treatment, enforcement, and community support.

• Expanding Resilience to Organised Crime (ROCC) initiatives, which support communities impacted by criminal activity and focus on breaking cycles of gang-related harm.

Social and Economic Harm Driving the New Approach

Minister Costello emphasised that organised criminal activity—including drug trafficking, cyber scams, migrant exploitation, firearms trafficking, and money laundering—has severe consequences across New Zealand society.

“Organised crime inflicts misery in our communities. It drives violent offending, harms individuals and families, damages legitimate businesses, and undermines the New Zealand economy,” she said.

The illicit drug trade alone is estimated to generate around $1.5 billion in social harm each year, highlighting the scale and urgency of the issue.

Expert Advice Informing the Strategy

The Government established a Ministerial Advisory Group comprising experts in law enforcement, intelligence, border security, and community harm reduction. Their key recommendations centred on:

• stronger governance and system-wide accountability

• better agency-to-agency information sharing

• a unified strategic direction focused on prevention as well as enforcement

“Basically, we need organised government to fight organised crime,” Costello said. “This action plan ensures we make full use of all the resources, powers, and information that agencies collectively possess.”

Toward a More Secure, Resilient New Zealand

The TSOC Strategy represents one of the most significant reforms in New Zealand’s crime-prevention architecture in years. By integrating law enforcement, social agencies, border protections, and community-based programmes, the Government aims not just to disrupt criminal groups, but to systematically reduce the harm they cause nationwide.