Dunne Peter: General Debate 
Dunne Peter: General Debate 
[Volume:638;Page:8622] 
Hon PETER DUNNE (Leader—United Future) 
: 
 I move  
That the House take note of miscellaneous business 
. In the aftermath of the release of the  
Report of the Commission of Inquiry into Police Conduct 
 yesterday a couple of positive developments need to be acknowledged. The first has been the immediate acceptance by the Government of all 60 recommendations of the report and its promise that those will be implemented. The second has been the unreserved apology issued by the Commissioner of Police for the disgraceful behaviour that was revealed by the report and his commitment to take all steps to ensure the culture that gave rise to that type of behaviour is not continued within the New Zealand police force. 
Two immediate measures arise from the broader surroundings of the report that are still to be dealt with. They were in the broad milieu of issues raised by the report but are critical to the restoration of credibility in the New Zealand Police and they need to be dealt with as a priority. The first of those concerns the position in Auckland of former assistant commissioner of police Mr Clint Rickards. Mr Rickards may well say in the wake of his recent acquittals that he is entitled to be reinstated to his old position. But any move to have Mr Rickards anywhere near being a serving officer within the New Zealand Police simply contaminates the whole process and undercuts the positive work that the Bazley report has initiated. 
So the pressure now has to go on Mr Rickards the police and the Government to ensure that his relationship with the New Zealand Police is terminated as swiftly as possible. While that taint of suspicion remains—albeit allowing for the acquittals—and while the need to build a new culture is held back by the shadow of the past there can be no progress. For many New Zealanders the real test of commitment to resolving the situation within the police force will rest on the fate of Mr Rickards. It is absolutely vital that there now be a concerted move to remove him as soon as possible. 
The second issue that we need to address in the wake of the report arises out of the trials. There are many many New Zealanders who scratch their heads today and ask how it can be when a rape case occurs that the complainant’s sexual history is laid bare before the court the complainant’s reputation is picked over and virtually destroyed by the defence counsel but the defendant’s prior history where it is relevant is shielded from the court. I think many New Zealanders will be saying that although the trials of Messrs Rickards Schollum and Shipton were conducted according to our rules and the juries did their best they will be asking why it is that those juries were not made aware that two of the defendants were already serving terms in prison for similar types of offence. 
The principles of trying to keep a separation may well be appropriate in some quarters but for many New Zealanders today they go to the heart of the credibility of this issue. I welcome the fact that the Law Commission has already indicated it wants to do some work in this area. I think it is vitally important that the New Zealand public be offered some assurance on this point and that we do not have the double standard whereby a complainant risks being figuratively laid bare in a court while a defendant can sit there and have previous facts which are utterly relevant to the case suppressed in the interests of allowing that person a fair trial. What price fairness for the complainant in those situations? 
The events of the last few months have brought that reality home very starkly to the people of New Zealand. Although it is good to see that the recommendations of the report have been adopted and that the appropriate apologies have been made—and I believe Commissioner Broad; I believe that there is genuine remorse within New Zealand Police—it is important that these matters of outstanding business be dealt with before there can be a proper end to this matter. We should never forget that those brave women who came forward are but the tip of the iceberg. There are many other women—if we look at the number of offences—who must have been attacked in this way. There are their families friends and supporters who have borne those women’s scars and burdens with them and they deserve some justice too. That is what has to happen now.