What a momentous day it is for the Australian Federal Police, and the Australian community as a whole, to welcome a new Commissioner.
It is a big year for the AFP given that October 2009 also marks the 30th Anniversary of the organisation.
What is sometimes forgotten is that the catalyst for the incorporation of the ACT and the Commonwealth Police in 1979 was an act of terrorism here on Australian soil.
The bomb that exploded at the Sydney Hilton Hotel during the Commonwealth Heads of Government Regional Meeting in February 1978 killed three people and injured eight.
It led to a review of Australia's ability to deal with terrorism at a national level.
A former head of Scotland Yard, Sir Robert Mark, chaired the inquiry and found our Commonwealth and State police system 'hopelessly outmoded'.
Tony Negus takes the reins of an organisation that I doubt Robert Mark would recognise but I'm sure would approve of.
I am advised that a police officer on the beat today carries between 8 and 10 kilos of gear on their accoutrement belt, and that mirrors the AFP's development over the past 30 years.
As the challenges that the organisation faces have changed, so have the tools needed to fight them.
The AFP that Tony Negus takes over is a highly skilled, highly professional and highly strategic outfit that recognises the importance of its role nationally and globally.
It is an organisation that works hand in hand with government to secure the future of Australia.
I know the Attorney-General and Minister for Home Affairs both greatly appreciate the strong partnership they have forged with the AFP. They are both thankful for the strategic and considered advice that they receive from their AFP colleagues.
The AFP has been in existence for 30 years - and Tony Negus has been with it for 27 of them. I'm sure the AFP you joined in 1982, Tony, is unrecognisable from the one that you are part of today.
Back then the AFP was only just coming to grips with its first mainframe computer, and I'm guessing when Tony was with Traffic Operations he wrote one or two accident reports on an old Olivetti - carbon paper and Tippex at the ready, and if there are children in the room you may have to explain all that to them.
But today's AFP leads the way in hi-tech crime fighting, which I know is an area Tony has a particular interest in.
The AFP also partners with the private sector to prevent crimes that were not even imagined in 1982.
Crimes that threaten us as individuals, as institutions and as a nation.
This is not Robert Peel's 1829 era of the newly established London constabulary, where the bobbies were responsible for not only preventing crime but for lighting lamps and telling the community that it's 'two o'clock and all is well'.
When Mick Palmer was about to pass the Commissioner's mantle to Mick Keelty in 2001, he said:
'Law enforcement, as is the case with other professions, is in a constant state of change. New commissioners and governments redefine the role they see for their police service in an endeavour to provide best practice to the communities they serve. No one aspires to be a police commissioner simply to maintain the status quo.'
Tony's challenge as Commissioner will be to keep the AFP moving forward while maintaining Australia's status quo as a peaceful and secure nation in rapidly changing times.
We only have to look at the past eight years of Mick Keelty's time in the role to see that 'standing still' was not an option - September 1, the Bali, Madrid and London bombings, the South-East Asian tsunami.
Mick leaves the AFP a great legacy, and the tributes to his leadership have been well documented since his decision to step down, but I will just say that not only has his leadership impacted on the domestic policing scene - his contribution to law enforcement in the region should be a source of great pride.
The AFP, under Mick's leadership, has also become not only a national but a world leader in drug investigation.
I'll just give you an idea of the magnitude of the change that Mick has overseen in that aspect of the job.
In his first year as Commissioner, Mick led an operation that saw the biggest ecstasy haul in Australia's history to that date. Operation Affcott netted 150 kilos of pills.
Last year, the AFP's Operation Inca netted 4.4 tonnes of pills.
It was the world's largest seizure of ecstasy and signalled the sophistication and sheer size of the international drug trade - another challenge for Tony's AFP.
21st century policing is part Neighbourhood Watch, part national security and part international peacekeeping. We live in a complex, interconnected world that sometimes moves at a frightening pace.
I said in my first National Security Statement last December that terrorism and serious and organised crime are key matters for consideration in our national security planning.
The AFP works hand-in-hand with the Commonwealth and State and Territory governments through the National Counter-Terrorism Committee, which coordinates a nationwide response to the threat and consequence of terrorism.
The AFP is working with its national and international security and law enforcement partners to share intelligence and invest in measures to prevent terrorism at the grassroots level - tasks made even more difficult when you consider that the Internet with its reach and ease of access is one of the greatest propaganda tools of terrorist organisations as they seek out the marginalised in western societies.
But it is naive to believe that terrorism is the only threat to our national security.
Identity theft, pandemics, cyber crime, people trafficking, man-made and natural threats to our critical infrastructure, and the emerging problems associated with climate change are just some of the diverse tasks facing Tony Negus and his organisation.
Policing is a central component of national security. Effective future policing will increasingly require whole of government and cross -jurisdictional strategies to respond to crime.
The AFP will have to further its capacity to act together domestically through cross-agency and cross-jurisdictional task forces.
The organisation will need to continue to strengthen its partnerships with the private sector.
It will have to continue to enhance its effective bilateral, regional and multilateral cooperation with international law enforcement agencies.
And high quality and networked intelligence must continue to be shared between investigative agencies - internationally and domestically.
But the key to the AFP responding to the challenges of the emerging environment is the professionalism and flexibility of its people. Those attributes that have been a trademark of this organisation will hold it in good stead as it builds its organisational resilience to withstand the domestic and international winds of change.
Tony Negus knows this organisation inside and out. He has already proved his commitment to recruiting the best officers and personnel available.
Tony wants more sworn officers back in frontline investigations. He believes investigation is the core of this police force and regardless of future challenges he wants that core to remain strong. He has recognised the way the world is heading and is passionate about further developing the AFP's hi-tech crime capability.
Tony Negus is a man for the time.
The role of Commissioner of the Australian Federal Police is both a privilege and a burden, but it is a burden that Tony Negus and his predecessors accept with pride, because it brings with it the satisfaction of knowing they lead an organisation that can make a real difference to the quality of the life of Australians.
Australia has great confidence Tony, that you have the experience, the wisdom, the integrity and the insight to lead the Australian Federal Police and meet the challenges of policing in the 21st Century.
Congratulations and on behalf of the Australian Government and the Australian people I wish you the very best as you assume the role of Commissioner.
I would now like to invite Tony and Acting Chief Justice Spender to the stage for the official swearing in of the new Commissioner.