SpeechHon POTO WILLIAMS (Minister of Police): Thank you Madam Chair and I appreciate the opportunity to respond to that member's questions. Firstly can I say though it's really nice to be in the Chamber to be able to speak to the wonderful work that the police do. Before I address the questions specifically I do want to say a huge thank you to our police. The last couple of years have been the most extraordinary that we've experienced as a nation in recent times and at the forefront of keeping us safe and giving us comfort have been our police: managed isolation and quarantine (MIQ) checkpoints assurance visits—all the while while being sick with COVID themselves or isolating as well. Huge amounts of pressure on them and they have still been able to deliver an excellent extraordinary service so my heartfelt thanks to them on that.Secondly can I say that Mr Mitchell has had a bit of a rough time with me over the last couple of weeks and he's had lots to say about me not all of it particularly nice. So I just wanted to respond to the way we should actually as members in this House deal with each other and that is with respect and I'm not entirely sure that that member has got the memo in that regard. It's been a rough couple of weeks in terms of the comments that have been made that haven't been entirely shall we say correct particularly when there are things that are conflated.You know I do reference the response times and I will come back to that but I do want to start back a little bit further because one of the issues that gets Mr Mitchell quite particularly exercised is that around gangs. If we go back we've had gangs in this country for a long time but we noted that the advent of the 501s has added a really critical element to the way gangs behave—much more overt much more sophisticated. That came about because of some sleepovers that John Key had with Malcolm Turnbull and a result of that close relationship that they had—the unholy conception of the 501s—became an issue that we had to deal with as a country. That started with John Key in 2015. Now in recognition of the impact that 501s were having on the criminal environment in New Zealand the National Party at that time put in place their gang plan. They announced it in 2016 and actually failed to do anything with that. So by the time that we came in to take office the issue had become so bad. The National Party had run down the police they had frozen the budget and police numbers had dropped. So when the member talks about the issue of dealing with crime we actually have spent the last four years rebuilding the police force ensuring that they have sufficient resource to do what they need to do and sufficient funding to do what they need to do and we have put in place some of the legislative tools that they need in order to do what they need to do. That is a fact—that can be demonstrated. Some of the things that Mr Mitchell has been saying are not quite fact and cannot be demonstrated. But let's go back to response times shall we? As the member asked—Hon Mark Mitchell: Tell us what they are. Hon POTO WILLIAMS: —and I'm really happy to answer these questions but I'd quite like to answer them in silence as I gave that member the opportunity to speak in silence if that is OK with that member. I do want to talk to response times because with regard to the comparative periods that Mr Mitchell used for the February 2022 figure that he quotes it was a particularly taxing time for our police if you will recall.Barbara Edmonds: Was it something happening around here?Hon POTO WILLIAMS: There was something that was happening around here actually—you're right members. But more than that the police rotations were coming out of MIQ they themselves were impacted by COVID by either being sick themselves—and on some days those abstractions were up to 460 police—and on top of that there were other concerns and issues that were going on. Still the police were able to respond to emergency calls in eight minutes and 39 seconds and that for me—[Bell rung] Madam Chair. CHAIRPERSON (Hon Jenny Salesa): I call the Minister the Hon Poto Williams.Hon POTO WILLIAMS (Minister of Police): I won't be long; I've just got a couple of things that I need to answer in terms of Mr Mitchell. Just over eight minutes for response times and some of the times that Mr Mitchell is quoting I think come from perhaps the 90th percentile not the 50th percentile. I think we can all say that that's an extraordinary thing. It's an extraordinary thing given all of that pressure that police were able to respond in that way.Mr Mitchell referenced retail crime. I just want to say that it's terrible what happened. The ram raids are shocking and no retailer should have to deal with that but you have to be able to respond and what's the police response? In partnership with Retail New Zealand they've developed the retail crime unit and that will deal with some of the issues that have come out of the Auckland CBD which used to be a thriving environment with tourists and people going into work. COVID has leave that place in—you know there's not as many people in the CBD as there once were. This is now a feature of many of our towns and cities where they used to have lots of people come through either for work or for recreation and that's not the case. So there is a different dynamic that is being experienced there and that's something that the police tell me but in response to that the development of the retail crime unit will help. Not only that but the additional 1400 police that we have already put on the front line will support that and help that concern as well. The other thing that I do want to say about the particular ram raids around some of those high-end shops is that it's not just a police matter. There are some things that local council can do to support retailers with perhaps the development of bollards or something in front of the shops. There are other things that can happen—it's not just a police response.In terms of police safety I was absolutely proud to stand next to the Commissioner of Police in the roll-out of the front-line safety programme and in fact there are two things that I am particularly proud of that we are doing as a Government. We are supporting the police around their front-line safety and the other piece of work—which will make our community safe—is the firearms register which we are still working on and we hope to get into place next year. If we get a real good handle on the firearms that are in our community how they're being transported how they're being secured and who actually has them that will increase the safety for our community. So I am really really proud to be leading that work and I will continue to lead that work and will be really proud when that business unit is up and running within the police.Now there were a couple of other things that the member asked me and hopefully I'll get a chance to touch on that but I do want to talk about Operation Tauwhiro. That member has said that Tauwhiro is business as usual. Tauwhiro has been a response to firearms in the hands of gangs and it is intentional and it is a specific piece of work. It has done such a good job that the police intend to roll it out but it's not the only operation. This member over here would suggest to the public of New Zealand that the only thing the police are doing is Tauwhiro. That is not the case and he is clearly misleading the public of New Zealand in that way. I'm just going to point to at least four operations that have been running in recent times that have dealt with firearms in particular: Trojan Shield Tarpon Seltos Operation Trout Weirton and Bloodhound. All of these are the front-line police getting out there and disrupting gangs and organised crime and that just because we have resourced them. We've had an extra 1400 police and an extra $450 million resource into the New Zealand Police and I am proud to be their Minister. I know he's jealous of my—Joseph Mooney: Point of order Madam Chairperson. The Minister just made a statement that the Hon Mark Mitchell had been misleading New Zealand and I just note that members in this House cannot say that a member is saying something is not correct: Speakers' ruling 44/4 states that a member may not accuse a member of making a statement they know to be incorrect.Barbara Edmonds: Thank you Madam Chair. Speaking to the point of order throughout the member Mark Mitchell's comments in his speech he referred to the Minister and was saying Be honest be honest." He repeated it three times. So I'm looking at Speakers' rulings 45/2-3 and 45/5 in relation to that. I did not take a point of order at the time. However another member has taken a point of order in relation to using the word "mislead". So I'd like the Chairperson to take that into account please.CHAIRPERSON (Hon Jenny Salesa): Yes I am taking into account the points that you've raised Barbara Edmonds. However I also overheard the member Mr Mitchell accusing the Minister that—well actually it was accusing me—"You are misleading the House." and I am capable of ruling. I don't need any assistance. I would like to now go back to the Minister for the remaining 21 seconds to finish off her speech.Hon Mark Mitchell: Point of order Madam Chairperson. You've just attributed a comment to me that I never said. I never once said that the Minister was misleading the House.CHAIRPERSON (Hon Jenny Salesa): There was someone from this side of the House as the Minister was giving her speech who said "You are misleading the House." which was actually accusing me of misleading the House not the Minister.Hon Mark Mitchell: That may will have been the case but it was not me and you attributed that comment to me.CHAIRPERSON (Hon Jenny Salesa): My apologies to the member. But at this time I would like the Minister to complete her speech before we move on to the next call.Hon POTO WILLIAMS: Thank you Madam Chair. I just say that there is more to the police than Operation Tauwhiro although the public of New Zealand would not know that if they were listening to Mr Mitchell. I welcome the opportunity to have further discussion about the fantastic work of the New Zealand Police and I am proud to be their Minister. Thank you."