Victoria Police will be given new powers to issue intervention orders on the spot in domestic violence situations, if a Liberal Coalition government is elected in November.

Key points: Currently police can only issue a temporary safety notice in domestic violence situations until a permanent order can be sought in court

Currently police can only issue a temporary safety notice in domestic violence situations until a permanent order can be sought in court Under the new system, an officer of the rank of senior constable and above would be able to issue an immediate order on the spot

Under the new system, an officer of the rank of senior constable and above would be able to issue an immediate order on the spot The matter would only go to court if one of the parties wanted to challenge the order

It follows calls from the Police Commissioner Graham Ashton last month to give police the powers, in order to free up police time and court resources.

Currently, when police respond to a family violence call, they only have power to issue a family violence safety notice which provides immediate, but temporary, protection while the victim waits for a court to issue a more permanent intervention order.

The proposed changes would allow police at the rank of Senior Constable or above, with more than four years of experience, to issue an indefinite family violence safety notice when they are called to a dispute.

The effect would be the same as a court-ordered intervention order.

The matter would only go to court if one of the parties wanted to challenge the order.

"This change will give police the powers to intervene straight away when it comes to family violence," Opposition Leader Matthew Guy said

The proposal would still need to pass through Parliament after the election to come into effect.

"These changes are important changes, they are changes that are the strongest in Australia," Mr Guy said.

"It's about making the system less traumatic for victims of crime and giving police the powers they need to serve these notices for longer periods of time," said the Opposition's police spokesman, Edward O'Donohue.

'This is not a parking fine'

However, several domestic violence groups have expressed concerns about the plan.

Joanna Fletcher, the chief executive officer of the Women's Legal Service Victoria, said police weren't ready to take on the power.

"This is not a parking fine, this is an order that's aiming to protect someone potentially from life-threatening family violence," Ms Fletcher said.

"It's not something that should be dealt with separately from the court system just because the court system is straining.

"The answer should be to resource the court so it's able to meet those demands."

The Victoria Royal Commission into Family Violence recommended the Government wait another three years before considering handing police powers to make intervention orders, to ensure proper training could take place.

The Victorian Labor Government is working towards that timeline.

The Coalition has pledged to deliver the promise in the first hundred days of government if it wins the election.

Commissioner Ashton has previously said family violence was the largest single issue police deal with — taking up a staggering 40 per cent of police work.

That's a call for help every seven minutes.

A woman is killed by a former or current partner on average every week in Australia, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. For men, the casualty rate averages one every month.

Mr Ashton said in the vast majority of cases, intervention orders aren't contested in court, and victims would be better served not being required to attend court.