Nash StuartSTUART NASH (Labour—Napier): Can I first of all say that I would like to thank the policemen and women on the ground who I think do a fantastic job but what I would like to say is that I just do not think they are being supported by this Government. Let me outline why. I would like to make three points. The first one is about the lack of police numbers—there is no money in the Budget for that—the second point I would like to talk about is crime resolution rates and the third point is the Safer Journeys road policy. In the police strategic budget from 2016 to 2020 it says there is no more money for extra police. In fact the number of police sworn and non-sworn stays exactly the same until 2020. And when we asked the Minister of Police about how she was going to cope with increasing crime rates a change in the nature of crime—i.e. more violent crime—this is what she said and I am going to quote from the report: We asked how the Police can be expected to deal with increasing crime rates especially violent crimes and crimes against the Police with no planned increase in constabulary staff." The Minister told us that "the Police now have access to tasers and firearms to respond to unexpected situations better." Arming the police with Tasers and firearms is not the solution to solving crime and keeping our communities safe.I absolutely believe that our police force is underfunded. We have a whole lot of incredibly competent men and women on the ground who are working very hard to keep our communities safe and solve crime but they are stretched to breaking point. This was reinforced by the Police Association survey in which 77 percent of members actually said that there are not enough front-line police. My second point is about resolution rates. Less than 8 percent of burglaries in Auckland are solved. Less than 8 percent of burglaries in Wellington are solved. This is not meeting—The CHAIRPERSON (Hon Trevor Mallard): Order! Fewer.STUART NASH: —fewer—the public expectation around the role of police in keeping us safe and solving crime. The police blamed the media. The police came out and blamed the media for MPs highlighting this fact. It is not the media's fault that there are fewer crimes being solved; it is the fact yet again that the police are under-resourced. They do not have the men and women on the ground to make sure that the bad guys are put in jail and held to account. The third point I would like to talk about is the Safer Journeys road policy. In the answers to the Estimates questions the police commissioner his team and the Minister of Police actually said that there are going to be 111—it is quite ironic really the number; is it not—fewer police dedicated to road safety on our roads. We are one of the very few OECD countries where the road toll is actually climbing. We all know that when you see a police car on the road you modify your behaviour. You take police cars off the road and people speed. We had the really unfortunate incident of the police Minister herself saying that it is OK to speed. We had the very very unfortunate incident of another Minister of the Crown saying because he got speeding tickets that he did not see the value in speeding tickets. Let me tell Mr Dunne and let me tell Mrs Collins that this best way to avoid a speeding ticket is actually obeying the law and driving to the speed limit.Kris Faafoi: Don't speed.STUART NASH: Do not speed. You are dead right.What we have seen is kiosks closing police being taken off road journeys police being taken off the road lower resolution rates and an increase in crime. No matter what anyone says the latest police statistics from May 2015 to May 2016—these are the latest statistics—show that every single measure except one so nine out of the 10 crime categories that the police measure actually went up.Dr David Clark: Nine out of 10?STUART NASH: Nine out of 10 went up. The Government cannot stand up and say that crime is falling because the police statistics paint a different picture. What I believe the police need—what I absolutely believe the police need—is not more Tasers not more guns but more resources. The police need more police on the ground involved in community policing and more police in the stations solving crime because the only way we are going to get crime numbers down and resolution numbers up is when we get our community policing working well and our traditional policing working well. Thank you."