The Government yesterday announced it would bolster the police force with 1125 more staff, including 880 sworn officers. All police districts would receive further staff under the plan.
Police confirmed the Southern district would receive one of 12 mobile policing units announced in the plan, which would provide policing services when and where they were required.
At least 15 police stations would receive their share of 140 officers to bolster regional and rural policing. While no plans were announced for the destination of those officers, the Police Association has mooted Queenstown as an option for further staffing.
Police would not comment yesterday on what stations would be going to 24/7 servicing or whether any stations in the Southern district were among them.
Police Association southern regional director Mike Thomas, of Wanaka, said the announcement every district would receive additional officers was welcomed by police in the South.
"Any addition to frontline staff is welcome and will be a boost to morale for the troops down here," he said.
"Certainly, it will relieve some pressures in the long term on frontline staff ... I would like to think there will a number allocated to Southern district, especially in the Queenstown-Lakes area with the number of tourists we are getting.
"Queenstown would be at the forefront for receiving more frontline staff."
Police Association president Chris Cahill said he also recognised the difficulties in policing the Southern district due to the large, sparsely populated area it covered and the number of transient visitors.
He hoped new resources would not be allocated based purely on permanent populations in the districts.
"It’s a really difficult district and that’s why we have always argued when they are allocating resources to look at not just population but the tyranny of distance these places have," he said.
"If it’s done on a needs basis, I think there’s some real positives [in the Government’s plan].
"It recognises we have cut too close to the bone in some places."
The focus on rural and regional policing in the plan suggested it would be "positive for Otago and Southland".
The mobile policing units also allowed police to be "more responsive when crises arise in particular areas".
Police Commissioner Mike Bush said the plan was a "very significant and welcome investment" in police.
"This investment increases our workforce by almost 10% over four years," he said.
"The Prime Minister’s announcement includes putting an extra 880 new police officers into frontline roles including response, organised crime, gangs and methamphetamine, child protection, family violence and in rural and ethnically diverse communities.
"While crime is lower than it was five years ago, we have seen an increase in demand for police services in these areas.
"The addition of these new staff means we can deliver more to support victims, prevent crime and hold offenders to account."
Southern police district
• New Zealand’s largest district by land area, covering almost 25% of the country’s land mass.
• Forty-six stations covering Otago and Southland, with 24/7 public services at Dunedin Central and Invercargill Central.
• More than 550 constabulary staff supported by about 80 other staff in the district, accounting for about 5% of all policing resources in the country.
• Southern contains the most one- and two-man police stations of any police district.
