Young Jonathan: Crimes Amendment Bill Local Government Amendment Bill Sentencing Amendment Bill (No 3) — Third Readings 
Young Jonathan: Crimes Amendment Bill Local Government Amendment Bill Sentencing Amendment Bill (No 3) — Third Readings 
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JONATHAN YOUNG (National—New Plymouth) 
: 
 I commend Carmel Sepuloni the previous speaker for her comments regarding the commitment not to see the perpetuation of gang culture and not to see gang culture become normalised in our society. Perhaps she has a stronger conviction than her leader who last year said: “We are targeting not gangs per se but their criminal activities. Anyone in New Zealand has the right to come together in a group and call or label themselves whatever they will—that is not the issue.” I think that the acquiescence that comment suggests is one of the reasons why New Zealanders on 8 November last year decided they wanted to have a National Government. It is not a matter of walking softly amongst these issues; it is a matter of having some very strong convictions about it. We understand that the previous Government was going to do a stocktake on the level of organised criminal activity but we need to understand that stocktakes do not address the issue where it counts. 
We need to understand that in New Zealand we have a war on P—not just a war on P but a war on the perpetuators of that drugged infusion into the minds and lives of New Zealanders and particularly of young New Zealanders. The Police Association says that the gang environment in New Zealand has changed. Let me read a comment that the Police Association made in its submission to the Law and Order Committee: “The New Zealand gang environment is now much more complex and serious. The ‘old’ face of gangs still exists especially in provincial and rural areas … But the old gangs are also now engaged in true organised crime. They are dealing higher value drugs such as methamphetamine and coordinated supply and distribution syndicates have replaced many of the old inter-gang rivalries.” There is a certain amount of cooperation amongst gangs in our society regarding the drug trade as gangs select prepare and distribute patches—not those on their backs but geographical areas in our cities that belong to certain groups. 
The submission goes on: “Modern gangs are organised with one aim—to make money. Cash flows and illegally-funded lifestyles are now at levels gang members in the 1980s could not even have dreamed of: the methamphetamine trade is currently estimated to be worth up to $1.5 billion a year in New Zealand of which Association members estimate at least 75% is controlled by gangs. To put that in perspective that is double the annual value of New Zealand’s entire wine exports.” Wine is a trade in which we are world leaders. What a tragedy that New Zealand is a world leader in the trading of methamphetamine. 
The political positions we have heard in the House today are varied. The Green Party reviewed the series of amendments to various Acts and called them window dressing. The Maori Party looked for other solutions. Labour suggested a stocktake on the level of organised crime although we do appreciate that party’s support for this legislation. We are at war. It is an insidious war; it is clandestine. It destroys the lives of people on the front line like Sergeant Don Wilkinson. He was a casualty of that war. 
National has drawn the line by using legislation to put more power in the hands of police local authorities and the judiciary. The solution that we propose is to face up to the issues and to have the political will and leadership to address those issues strongly in our society. We cannot propose soft options when the people we are dealing with have no respect or regard for any authority and when they will not engage in reasonableness because their intent is to take our money and to destroy our society. If someone gets in the road of their intentions as the Hon Shane Jones so well articulated they will kill that person. This is what we face in our nation. 
It is important to realise that many of our communities are terribly inflicted with the plague of criminality that comes through gangs and drugs. One community in Porirua has stated that it has had a serious gang problem since the early 1970s when the Mongrel Mob and their associates moved into their community and began recruiting support from amongst the youth of the area. How many heartbroken mothers and fathers in our nation have seen their young people full of potential ability dreams and intelligence get drawn in by the lure of inclusion and identity and by the prospect of working through some echelon and coming into some easy money? How many have seen their young people drawn into those gangs? The community in Porirua said that “The gang has established fortified headquarters which have long been the focal point of rapes murders and a vast array of other serious criminal offending. The gang’s central philosophy is a commitment to antisocial and criminal behaviour.” These are not my comments; they are the comments of New Zealanders who have experienced the presence of a gang with its criminal activity in their community. They went on to say that the gang “is involved in most of the drug dealing in our community and it exists as an imminent and ever-present threat to those who live in our city. The significant financial returns gained from crime and drug dealing make it an attractive option for disaffected youth in our community.” 
Although we understand the benefit of having law like this legislation in place it does not address the cause of the problem. But it will make belonging to a gang that is based on criminal activity not only a breach of the law but also increasingly difficult and unattractive in order to dilute the power of gangs in our communities. The solution that society is looking for is accountability. We want to see responsibility come into people’s choices so we see today that there will be an increased penalty for associating in a group of people with the intent of committing criminal activity. The sentence time will rise from 5 years to 10 years. 
We know there are major issues in New Zealand. We know that over the decades there has been the enculturation of the presence of gangs in New Zealand but we should never accept that gangs are part of the Kiwi way of life. We must never lose our ground and be intimidated simply by their presence. We know that the issue for many gang members is a lack of education which leads to failure and causes gang options to become more attractive. We need to address that issue and to be multi-faceted in all of our attempts to build a healthy and good society. We know that young people search for identity and that if they are rejected by others they will quickly cling to those who give them some form of affirmation. There is much that needs to be addressed in the parenting of our young people in New Zealand. We know that many members of gangs are victims themselves who get involved in the perpetuation of further victimisation. Although all these issues are understandable the outcomes are never acceptable nor should they be excusable. 
As I come to a close I say that I believe that the National Government has grasped the nettle in having the political courage and leadership to address the hard issues in our society. I commend this legislation to the House.