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Speaker 1: Casey Costello, his colleague has got an organized crime task

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Speaker 1: Force and the latest report reckons we need to create

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Speaker 1: a new ministerial portfolio responsible for fighting it. The report

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Speaker 1: was out this morning. Casey Costello, Customs Minister, Associate Police

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Speaker 1: with US Now, Minister, good morning, Hello, minister, can you

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Speaker 1: hear me? Good morning?

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Speaker 2: Good morning?

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Speaker 1: Oh there, we are good to have you on the program. Now.

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Speaker 1: I've read, We've spoken about these before. I've read all

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Speaker 1: these reports with great interest, and some of them been

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Speaker 1: quite good. But this one seems nuts to me. Do

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Speaker 1: we really need another ministerial portfolio?

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Speaker 2: Well, I think what you're highlighting is the position of

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Speaker 2: the understanding of what organized crime as. We're not talking

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Speaker 2: about a new minister. We're talking about a minister responsible

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Speaker 2: for bringing ocasion. We've done it before. We've had the

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Speaker 2: Border Executive Board was established during COVID, We've had the

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Speaker 2: COVID earthquake at Canterbury Earthquake, Recovery Authority, the Infrastructure Commission,

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Speaker 2: the Center of Sexual Violence and Family Violence, where we

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Speaker 2: put responsible ministers in charge. This is about cohesion and

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Speaker 2: the challenge that we've got is that we have all

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Speaker 2: of these agencies doing small about small amounts of things.

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Speaker 2: It's about ensuring that we understand why this is a

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Speaker 2: priority because at the end of the day, as you've

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Speaker 2: seen in the other reports, the cost is being paid

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Speaker 2: by the most vulnerable communities and the poorest communities are

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Speaker 2: bearing the biggest brunt. And we need to ensure that

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Speaker 2: all of the agencies that can impact, effect, reduced to

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Speaker 2: ter disrupt organized crime have a cohesive response. And that's

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Speaker 2: what this report is asking for, and it's what they

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Speaker 2: asked the Ministerial Advisory Group to do is be bold,

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Speaker 2: be innovative, think about the things that can make us

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Speaker 2: most effective in this space, and that's what they're going for.

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Speaker 1: So we wouldn't see a minister for organized crime specifically,

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Speaker 1: we would just see a police minister who has an

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Speaker 1: extra group working under them.

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Speaker 2: Well, and this is the part is whether where this

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Speaker 2: responsibility sits. Is that we have you know, we have

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Speaker 2: leavers with an eye within the company's office, within customs,

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Speaker 2: within immigration. All of these agencies have responsibilities to have

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Speaker 2: an impact in this space. And how do we make

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Speaker 2: sure that our response is connected in the cohesive as

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Speaker 2: the criminals are. Well, that's what we're really asking for.

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Speaker 1: So you will so, will you recommend to cabinet that

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Speaker 1: we get that, you know, we should have a new portfolio.

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Speaker 2: As you've seen in the report, they want to make

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Speaker 2: the final report, which will be later this month, as

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Speaker 2: to how do we bring all of these recommendations together

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Speaker 2: to have the most impact. And I'll wait for that

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Speaker 2: final report as to how does this work. This is

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Speaker 2: just one of the aspects of all of the reports

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Speaker 2: they put forward and we'll look at that. But I

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Speaker 2: see this in real merit. We've done it before. I mean,

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Speaker 2: we've been the eighties. We set up the Serious Fraud

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Speaker 2: Office to respond to a specific type of criminals. Ending

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Speaker 2: we've done these things before. Let's look at what the

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Speaker 2: best solution is.

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Speaker 1: Has any of the stuff that has been recommended thus

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Speaker 1: far actually stopped any organized crime.

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Speaker 2: We've seen a lot of cohesion coming through. We've we've

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Speaker 2: had a really good stepping up of the involvement of

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Speaker 2: ir D. We've done some innovative stuff around our response

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Speaker 2: in the Pacific with customs and police continue to work effectively.

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Speaker 2: We've seen a massive step change in the amount of

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Speaker 2: methamphet I mean, we're recovering, We're starting to see that

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Speaker 2: wastewater result tracking down. We're definitely not there, but we

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Speaker 2: are seeing some impacts in this space.

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Speaker 1: All right. Are you with Shane renationalized the gent tailors?

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, of course I'm with Shane. I think

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Speaker 2: there's some real merit and what we can do. We

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Speaker 2: need an affordable economy and we need energy as a

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Speaker 2: huge part of us growing our economy.

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Speaker 1: So you're in favor of renationalizing them.

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Speaker 2: Well, you know, I think we need some better controls

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Speaker 2: over it, and that's what that's what we're asking for,

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Speaker 2: is we need we need to put New Zealantes first

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Speaker 2: in this space.

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Speaker 1: All right, Caseie, appreciate your time. Thanks so much for

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Speaker 1: being with me. Casey Costello, the minister who's getting these

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Speaker 1: organized crime reports. For more from Early Edition with Ryan Bridge,

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Speaker 1: listen live to News Talks itt B from five am weekdays,

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Speaker 1: or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.