Introduction

Marine Police started about 170 years ago. In 1924, Marine Police built its headquarters at the mouth of the Singapore River at Cavenagh Bridge. The Marine Police came into its own with some 26 boats and a complement of 238 men. This held out at least until the Japanese Occupation in 1942, when the Japanese confiscated all our vessels.

After the Second World War, Singapore experienced a rapid growth in the shipping community and shipping-related activities. The need to patrol the shallower waters, therefore, was imperative. By 1951, sub-bases had been established at Tanjong Kling, Pulau Ubin and Pulau Tekong. Following the reorganisation of the Singapore Police Force (SPF) in 1952, the boats in Marine Police were increased to 68 and at one stage 70, during the time of the Konfrontasi with Indonesia in the 1960's.

On 13th February 1993, PCG underwent a massive restructuring which saw the Marine Police upgrading itself into the Police Coast Guard. This change supported greater policing roles at sea including joint operations with the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN), anti-illegal migrant operations, handling foreign government vessel intrusions and guarding Horsburgh Lighthouse in the Singapore Straits.

As a sign of PCG's growing prominence in the region, numerous alliances were forged with our counterparts from the RMMP (Royal Malaysian Marine Police) and the TNI-AL (Indonesian Navy). The alliances and agreements entered into cover issues such as cross-border operations, information sharing and maintaining direct communication links with one another.

Mission
The mission of the Police Coast Guard is to prevent, deter and detect Crime in Singapore Territorial Waters.

Vision
Our Vision is to become a world class maritime policing agency dedicated to providing quality service and achieving high standards of professionalism and operational excellence. We will be a caring, progressive and cohesive organisation. We help build Singapore into our best home by preserving the security and integrity of our territorial waters.

Roles and Functions
Police Coast Guard roles are to enforce the law and maintain order in Singapore Territorial Waters and to prevent and detect crime. We also conduct Search and Rescue and assist other maritime agencies such as MPA, RSN, ICA and Customs.

The Police Coast Guard has a total of 4 bases which are strategically located across the island (equivalent to the NPCs) in her frontline policing of Singapore Territorial Waters.