Collins Judith: Policing (Storage of Youth Identifying Particulars) Amendment Bill — In Committee Third Reading 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Collins Judith: Policing (Storage of Youth Identifying Particulars) Amendment Bill — In Committee Third Reading 
[Sitting date: 16 August 2011. Volume:675;Page:20902. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
Hon JUDITH COLLINS (Minister of Police) 
: 
 I will take a moment to answer some of the queries that have been raised. For a start I will look at the Police Act 1958 and at the relevant section section 57(3) which states: “If the person in respect of whom particulars have been taken under this section is acquitted the particulars shall be forthwith destroyed:”. In effect that is saying that the particulars of anybody who is charged and found not guilty have to be destroyed. The Policing Act 2008 changed the whole nature of that provision and said essentially that the particulars must be destroyed unless something else has happened. So the emphasis changed to destroying the particulars. Section 34(b)(ii) of the Policing Act 2008 states that particulars must be destroyed “unless—(A) the person is convicted; or (B) the person is discharged under section 106 of the Sentencing Act 2002; or (C) an alternative resolution is imposed where the person admits to an offence (for example diversion).”  
Many of the arguments I have heard today from members of the Green Party and the Maori Party would have us think that the previous Parliament thought that identifying particulars should be kept for someone on a diversion but not when proof of guilt has already been given in the Youth Court and where a resolution has been reached. Many would think that that is an alternative resolution and that it is covered in this particular subsection. I can well imagine why the previous Parliament felt that.  
In fact when the issue was first raised as to whether this subsection enabled the police to keep the particular identifying features in relation to youth offenders whose matters had been resolved in the Youth Court—often when the offenders had said they were guilty and the resolution had been agreed to—the police sought advice from Crown Law. There were months and months of discussions between the police and Crown Law because there is a very legitimate case here that would say there is a lot of doubt as to what these words mean and to whom they would apply.  
I have heard the argument that the Police Act was passed in 1958 which was before the Youth Court was established so clearly it does not apply. Well it does apply because the Police Act 1958 has been amended on many occasions over the years which is why the previous Minister of Police Annette King thought it should be reviewed and she was quite right to do so. She was quite right to bring in new legislation and to bring it into a more modern age but that is where this slip-up occurred. The Policing (Storage of Youth Identifying Particulars) Amendment Bill is simply making sure that we remove that possibility—in fact probability—that the wrong decision could be brought about.  
I do not think that is evidence of a conspiracy; I think that is evidence of members of this House trying to do the right thing by the public by victims and frankly by youth offenders who do need to be held accountable for their actions. This bill is not something that enables the police to charge around collecting information just in case one day they might want to charge someone; this is about making sure that they get the right people who have committed the crimes rather than the wrong people. It is also about understanding that the youth we are talking about are deeply troubled or they would not be in this situation. The last thing they need from this Parliament is the sort of argument I have heard today from some members which is that it is all about the police wanting to be mean to young offenders and to pick on them. These young people need help. They cannot get help unless they go through a system like the Youth Court which brings them a great deal of opportunities to change their ways. The Youth Court has been a huge success; we should support it. This bill supports the Youth Court and the work it does.