Power Simon: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Power Simon: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:649;Page:17905] 
8.  
SIMON POWER (National—Rangitikei) 
 to the  
Minister of Justice 
: Does she agree with the Ombudsman that the criminal justice system is at “serious risk”? 
Hon ANNETTE KING (Minister of Justice) 
: 
 As I told that member in response to a similar question on 6 December 2007 the Ombudsman’s wide-ranging report deserves careful consideration. Since then the Government has established the Criminal Justice Advisory Board progressed work to improve the services and support available to victims further enhanced the role of the justice sector in leading work to prevent crime and been involved in many other projects as well. 
Simon Power 
: Why should the public have confidence in Labour’s management of the justice system when the crime reduction strategy introduced in 2001 has been left unchanged after an independent stocktake concluded that “the concept of it providing ‘an overarching framework’ was never properly developed … a work programme was never defined; targets and accountabilities were never agreed.”? 
Hon ANNETTE KING 
: The public can have confidence in this Government because our crime reduction strategy is working as shown by the annual crime statistics released to all New Zealanders. 
Simon Power 
: Can the Minister confirm the contents of the 2001 Cabinet paper that established the crime reduction strategy which states that most of these priorities were in fact already in place or in preparation; if so what did the crime reduction strategy add given that British crime prevention expert Dr Sohail Husain found that “It is debatable whether a [crime reduction strategy] was ever properly formulated.”? 
Hon ANNETTE KING 
: If the member is saying that it was in place before Labour became the Government and that work had been done on it before Labour became the Government I can only assume that Dr Husain did not actually believe that the National Government had done anything. However in terms of crime reduction as far as this Government is concerned as I said we can see the work that has been done by this Government in the crime statistics— 
Simon Power 
: It’s not working. 
Hon ANNETTE KING 
: Well I can tell the member that there has certainly been a lot more done by this Government in terms of sentences in terms of parole in terms of prison in terms of youth offending and in terms of family violence than was ever done by the National Government. In fact the National Party is still in denial about the level of family violence we have in this country. 
Te Ururoa Flavell 
: Tena koe Madam Speaker. Kia ora tatou. Does the Minister recall her response to the Ombudsman’s report of 6 December 2007 that “The Government intends to give it serious consideration and not make ad hoc and off-the-hoof comments …” and what response will she now make to his recommendation to establish a commission of inquiry to investigate the operation of the entire criminal justice system and to put forward the philosophies and values that should guide its policies and practices into the future?  
Hon ANNETTE KING 
: The member is quite correct: we said it did require careful consideration. We also rejected an inquiry because we believed that a lot of work had been done in the criminal justice system including in the whole area of effective interventions. In fact our response was to establish the Criminal Justice Advisory Board which was laughed at by National members. They said that they did not need to have any consideration of the views of people outside Parliament—that they knew it all. They laughed at people such as those who work in the criminal justice system—Victim Support the Salvation Army and others—and said they would not take any notice of them. We believe that those people have something to offer. 
Simon Power 
: Does the Minister agree with Dr Husain’s finding in 2006 that the crime reduction strategy is “no longer ‘fit for purpose’ insofar as it is not effectively giving strategic direction to crime reduction activity.”? 
Hon ANNETTE KING 
: No. I believe that this Government has put in place through a number of agencies—it has not relied on just the police and the Ministry of Justice but has worked across agencies—a very comprehensive approach to crime in New Zealand particularly youth crime and family violence and we are seeing the benefits of our putting in place such an approach. 
Simon Power 
: Can the Minister confirm that the director of the crime reduction unit of the Ministry of Justice described in an email Dr Husain’s critical report of the crime reduction strategy as “accurate and balanced”? 
Hon ANNETTE KING 
: No I cannot confirm that. I do not have the email in front of me and I have not seen it. I judge this Government on the result—the work that has been done and the investment that has been made. Our Government has put our money and our actions where our mouth is unlike the National Party which when in Government had a lot of hot air about this issue but did very little about it.