More than 1000 Victorian police officers have been carrying out duties without the authority to do so for the past eight years.
The mammoth bungle was revealed by the state’s Police Minister Lisa Neville, who said the error affected ofxjmtzywficers who joined the force between 2014 and 2021.
“We’ve acted swiftly to address the issue after it was uncovered by Victoria Police last week and confirmed by legal advice in recent days,” she said.
“We’ll continue working closely with Victoria Police to ensure the work of officers in keeping us safe is uninterrupted.”
Ms Neville said the administrative error wouldn’t effect any police officer’s ranking within the force.
It’s expected officers will be correctly sworn in within the coming weeks, starting from Thursday morning.
