Nash Stuart: Oral Questions — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeNash Stuart: Oral Questions — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 08 June 2016. Volume:714;Page:11787. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]11.STUART NASH (Labour—Napier) to the Minister of Police: Does she believe that having Police on the road has a role in road safety given her recent statement “There will be fewer police officers on the road”?Hon JUDITH COLLINS (Minister of Police): Yes.Stuart Nash: Is she aware that according to official statistics cellphone use contributed to only 0.05 percent of all fatal or serious injury crashes; if so why did she blame men on cellphones for the increased road toll?Hon JUDITH COLLINS: The facts speak for themselves. For the 5 years from 2010 to 2015 cellphone offences: 70 percent male. Cellphone-related fatal crashes: 73 percent male. Driver deaths: 86 percent male. Percentage at fault: 85 percent male. Alcohol offences: 76 percent male. Illegal street racing: 97 percent male. The facts speak for themselves.Stuart Nash: Who is right: the Minister when she said that having fewer police is not to blame for the increased road toll or the hard-working Associate Minister of Transport Craig Foss when he said that “Fewer police officers might be a contributor.”?Hon JUDITH COLLINS: Well clearly I am responsible for my statements and clearly I agree with them.Denis O’Rourke: To assist the efforts of police for road safety will she seek the full implementation of the Australasian New Car Assessment Programme five star safety rating -technologies; if not why not?Hon JUDITH COLLINS: I believe that is a matter for the Minister of Transport or for the Associate Minister of Transport; certainly not for the Minister of Police.Denis O’Rourke: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. The police very often advocate for improvements to roads and improvements to motor vehicle technologies and I would therefore expect that the Minister should have a view on this.Mr SPEAKER: And the Minister did express a view on it which was that it was more appropriate to be asked of the Minister of Transport. That is her view obviously. Further supplementary questions?Denis O’Rourke: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker—Mr SPEAKER: No no no I have ruled on that matter. [Interruption] Mr O’Rourke I have ruled on that matter. If you want to raise a fresh point of order I will hear it but I am not going to have you argue with me while I am in the Chair.Denis O’Rourke: To assist the efforts of the police for road safety will she seek safety improvements for regional roads especially where there are accident black spots; if not why not?Hon JUDITH COLLINS: Well it is certainly an issue that Ministers and members of Parliament talk about quite a lot because I fully agree that there are black spots. The three big issues in road policing and road safety include engineering which is what he is talking about and that is something that we talk about regularly.Stuart Nash: When she says she is not “a big fan of the absolute restrictions on speed” is that because she thinks men on phones cause more deaths than speeding?Hon JUDITH COLLINS: Because actually I do not agree with giving people speeding tickets for driving 1 kilometre over the speed limit. Because do you know whatthe way I see it—[Interruption]Mr SPEAKER: Order!Hon JUDITH COLLINS: Or even 3 kilometres over the speed limit. And one of the things I think is that when we have that sort of what I would say is very strict adherence we can end up with drivers watching the speedometer to the exclusion of watching the road and considering the road conditions.Stuart Nash: Is blaming men on cellphones not simply a way to hide the fact that a cut in funding for road policing will inevitably end in more deaths on our roads?Hon JUDITH COLLINS: It is a 6.7 percentage increase in the road policing budget. It is in fact $100 million more than the budget that was approved 10 years ago under the previous Government. It is a huge increase but the fact is that we also have technology at play here. Police have roles in education and enforcement on the roads; they are not all actually driving the cars.Stuart Nash: Given her statement that “I’m one of many people who consistently sees people still on mobile phones whether they are in trucks or vans or cars” has the police data and research team also had funding cuts and does it now rely on what the Minister sees when out and about?Hon JUDITH COLLINS: No it is actually just noting that I am somebody who gets out and about. I do not sit around an office looking at the mirror like that member does.Mr SPEAKER: Order! [Interruption] Order! The last—[Interruption] Order! The last part of that answer does not assist me in doing my job in this House. Question No. 12—[Interruption] Order!