At 24 June 2019 the balance of the Proceeds of Crime Fund was approximately $45 million, Justice Minister Andrew Little says.

Mr Little provided the information in response to a written parliamentary question from National MP Mark Mitchell.

Another question from Mr Mitchell asked for the dates on which the two bidding rounds for the 2019 allocation of funds under the Criminal Proceeds (Recovery) Act 2009 were anticipated to take place.

Mr Little said the first bidding round commenced in April 2019 with decisions from Ministers in second half of 2019. The second bidding round is scheduled to commence in September 2019.

Future of Proceeds of Crime Fund

The Criminal Proceeds (Recovery) Act 2009 allows police to seize cash and assets from criminals if the High Court agrees that they are directly or indirectly a proceed of crime. Recovered money is placed in the Fund to be used to target criminal and organised crime activities. Government agencies are encouraged to bid for money from the Fund for intiatives which include testing new and innovative ideas.

On 22 May 2019 Justice Minister Andrew Little proactively released a Cabinet Paper on the Future of the Proceeds of Crime Fund.

The paper reported on a revised process for the allocation of funding under the 2009 Act. It sought approval to continue the Fund with broadened scope, while prioritising a focus on organised criminal groups, to revise its management, refresh the allocation, and set high-level priorities for the 2019 bidding round.

Cabinet agreed to the proposal to broaden the scope of the Fund to include addressing crime-related harm, and agreed to continue the bidding process.