9. Question No. 9—Prime MinisterDAVID SEYMOUR (Leader—ACT) to the Prime MinisterQuestion No. 9—Prime MinisterSPEAKER: Before the member starts I'll just indicate to the House that the remote interpretation is now working.David Seymour: Just in time!SPEAKER: I deliberately said it because I knew it was such a high priority for the member!David Seymour: I reflect on my priorities Mr Speaker. Lucky it's Christmas time!9. DAVID SEYMOUR (Leader—ACT) to the Prime Minister: Does she stand by her answer The Police." to my question last week "Who will propose the times locations and protocols for checkpoints on public roads when iwi representatives are acting as enforcement officers under the COVID-19 public health Act amendments made last month"; if so will these checkpoints be initiated by iwi Police or the Director-General of Health?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN (Prime Minister): To answer the first part of the question yes. To answer the second part of the question: the Police.David Seymour: How many police officers will be diverted from other duties to run checkpoints under the COVID-19 Public Health Response Act in Northland over the coming months?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: Obviously the operational decisions over the summer period for the Police are matters for the Police. Those are decisions that they determine and in any given summer they may make a decision that they need to deploy additional staff to say the Coromandel. On this occasion we're in the middle of a pandemic. There will be additional staff deployed into Northland. The current boundary according to the Police is staffed by 278 police and I thank them for their service. They have helped New Zealand contain an outbreak that could have had devastating effects. Over the summer period I'm told at any one time the Police have decided that there will be 74 police officers operating checkpoints in Northland.David Seymour: How many non - police officers have been authorised as enforcement officers giving them the power to run checkpoints under the COVID-19 Public Health Response Act as of right now?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: The second part of the member's statement is incorrect. Only the Police can operate a checkpoint. Police must also run those checkpoints. The member I would have thought would be familiar with those provisions for two reasons. First of all throughout the pandemic the police have been doing that and they have from time to time been supported by others. That is not new. But those arrangements were formalised through legislative changes that went to select committee from 29 September to 11 November. The clause was explicitly addressed during that period. The member was a part of that select committee process.David Seymour: Is the Prime Minister denying that the legislation she just referred to says that enforcement officers can stop vehicles so long as they are under the supervision of a constable?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: The member implied that those other than the Police could run checkpoints. That is incorrect. An enforcement officer is able to stop persons. It's only of course though Police who can operate them establish them and of course oversee the operation. This is not new. We've been undertaking arrangements such as this throughout the COVID pandemic response. The member has argued for two competing issues I notice in this debate. On the one hand he doesn't think that the Police should have anyone else supporting them; on the other he's unhappy that the Police are having to run them.David Seymour: What will be the penalty for an unvaccinated and untested person leaving Auckland stopped at one of these checkpoints?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: I would need to go back and reconfirm the fine and penalty arrangement. Obviously we have a fines arrangement in place for those who do not comply with the COVID protection framework; those who do not comply with quarantine provisions and the use for instance of COVID passes. It's all contained within the COVID protection framework and there is a range.David Seymour: Does she believe checkpoints will increase travel times over summer and if so can she tell people what a reasonable time is in her opinion for them to be delayed by such a checkpoint?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: Again these are all issues that are ultimately up to the police to choose how they manage traffic flows how they choose to operate compliance checks. We have placed a requirement on Aucklanders departing to carry proof that they are vaccinated or that they've carried out a test if they are not. It is then up to the police to choose how they then check compliance with that in the same way that we do not stipulate how the police at any given time check whether someone is speeding whether someone is complying with the road rules or whether or not someone's complying with drunk-driving laws. They're all expectations on citizens that ultimately the police have enforcement roles over.Hon Stuart Nash: Has the Prime Minister seen reports that there are over 1200 more police working hard in New Zealand since we came into office compared to a decrease in police numbers during the last three years of the previous National Government?SPEAKER: OK well the Prime Minister can answer the first part of the question.Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: I can confirm that we made a commitment at the beginning of our term in office that we wanted to see an increase in front-line policing; we've worked very hard to do that. There's no doubt that that has of course served us well as we've had to manage COVID-19 and its effect and I do want to thank all those police officers who have been a part of protecting communities during this pandemic."