NSW police minister announces resignation of Commissioner Karen Webb

Police minister Yasmin Catley thanked Commissioner Karen Webb for her distinguished 38-year career in NSW Police. Footage: NSW Parliament

Transcript

00:00Mr Speaker the Commissioner recently wrote to me indicating her intention to

00:04retire by the end of the year. She will mark 38 years of service in the New

00:11South Wales Police Force in coming weeks. She's indicated that to give effect to

00:17her retirement plan she will resign as Commissioner on the 30th of September.

00:21She has provided a lengthy notice period to enable the government to conduct a

00:27thorough recruitment process for her successor. Commissioner Webb has had an

00:33extremely extinguished career marked by exemplary service. I have nothing but

00:40heartfelt thanks for her incredible work and admiration for her many significant

00:45achievements. She has been a force for change and reform focused on the safety

00:52and the well-being of the New South Wales Police. She will leave a

00:57significant legacy and that includes for the house's benefit paid study for

01:04student police officers. A historic pay rise for every police officer in New South

01:11Wales. Full-time equivalent work allowing police officers for the very first time

01:18to job share. Overseen the attestation of the largest class in 11 years and that

01:24was just last week. She established the domestic and family violence register. She

01:32took on head-on tackling regional crime through operational regional mongoose and

01:38operation Ceteria. Delivered critical infrastructure upgrades including a new

01:44police station at Helensburg and of course the health and well-being unit. Be a cop in

01:53your hometown to recruit more officers in regional areas in our regional communities.

02:00Establish Strike Force Pearl and Operation Shelter to tackle anti-semitic and hate crimes

02:07right across this state. Operationalising new wanding laws to keep more knives off our streets. In 2024, Webb

02:19apologised for the forces handling of gay hate crimes for over a period of 40 years in this state.

02:27Pioneered the launch of revolutionary technology including Blue Link to

02:36improve community safety and has driven the expansion of the family liaison

02:42officers program to better support victims and families of victims of crime

02:48including

03:02driven the expansion of the family liaison officers, the FLOW program, to better support victims and

03:09families of victims of crime including at events like Bondi Junction and the Greta bus crash.

03:15Mr Speaker, when others would be happy to stick with the status quo, Karen Webb has strived for more.

03:26She is a true trailblazer. The former Premier Dominic Perrottet and I didn't agree on some things but I certainly,

03:36and I said it to him when he was here, the best decision he ever made was to announce that

03:42Karen Webb was the Police Commissioner of New South Wales. On behalf of the New South Wales Government

03:49and the people of New South Wales, I thank Karen Webb, our Commissioner for Police,

03:57for her extraordinary career of self-sacrifice and public service. I thank the House.

04:03law last year. Amen.