Statement on the NSW Police Commissioner’s decision to retire
The Commissioner recently wrote to me indicating her intention to retire before the end of the year.
She will mark 38 years of service with the NSW Police Force in the coming weeks.
The Commissioner has indicated she will resign on 30 September.
She has provided a lengthy notice period to enable the Government to conduct a thorough recruitment process for her successor.
Commissioner Webb has had an extremely distinguished career, marked by exemplary service.
I have nothing but heartfelt thanks for her incredible work and admiration for her many significant achievements.
She has been a force for change and reform focussed on the safety and wellbeing of our police. She will leave a significant legacy including:
- Paid study for student police officers;
- A historic pay rise for the NSW Police;
- Full-time equivalent work allowing police to job share for the first time ever;
- Overseen the attestation of the largest student police class in 11 years, just last week;
- Establishment of the Domestic and Family Violence Registry;
- Tackling regional crime through Operation Regional Mongoose and Operation Soteria;
- PULSE and the creation of the Health Safety and Wellbeing Command;
- Be a Cop in Your Hometown to recruit more officers to regional areas;
- Established Strike Force Pearl and Operation Shelter to tackle antisemitism and hate crimes across the state;
- Operationalising new wanding laws to keep more knives off our streets;
- In 2024 Webb apologised for the force's handling of gay hate crimes over a period of 40 years;
- Pioneered the launch of revolutionary technology, including BluLink, to improve community safety;
- Driven the expansion of the family liaison officer (FLO) program, to better support victims and families of victims of crime including at events like the Bondi Junction incident.
On behalf of the NSW Government, I thank Karen Webb for her extraordinary career of self-sacrifice and public service.
I intend to appoint Deputy Commissioner Peter Thurtell as an interim Commissioner while we conduct a thorough recruitment process.