Hughes Darren: Summary Offences (Tagging and Graffiti Vandalism) Amendment Bill — Third Reading 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Hughes Darren: Summary Offences (Tagging and Graffiti Vandalism) Amendment Bill — Third Reading 
[Sitting date: 19 June 2008. Volume:647;Page:16786. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
Hon DARREN HUGHES (Deputy Leader of the House) 
 on behalf of the  
Minister of Justice 
: I move  
That the Summary Offences (Tagging and Graffiti Vandalism) Amendment Bill be now read a third time 
. This bill takes important action to address New Zealand’s graffiti vandalism problem by strengthening the legal framework for graffiti-related offences.  
The bill amends the Summary Offences Act 1981 by creating specific offences of tagging graffiti vandalism and defacing; creating a specific offence for possession of graffiti implements in circumstances where it can be reasonably assumed that they are intended to be used to commit a graffiti offence; prohibiting the sale of spray-cans to under-18-year-olds; and restricting access to spray-cans in stores so that the public cannot access them without the assistance of a shop employee. The penalties for committing the graffiti vandalism offence are a $2000 fine or a community-based sentence or both.  
Graffiti and tagging are highly visible forms of vandalism that the community will want quickly addressed. The bill’s option of community-based sentences whereby offenders clean up the damage they have caused to themselves and to the community is therefore likely to be seen by the community as an appropriate and effective penalty for many offenders. The bill does not require retailers to implement expensive sophisticated security measures to prevent spray-can theft. They must simply ensure that spray-cans are not accessible in shops without the help of employees. Retailers will not be left alone to deal with the requirements of this bill. Support will be available in the form of compliance information and recommended store signage to enable them to comply with the new provisions.  
Labour recognises that this legislation alone is not enough to combat the serious problem of tagging and graffiti in our country. That is why the Government has agreed to the core components of the nationwide Stop Tagging Our Place (STOP) strategy which will empower communities and territorial local authorities to act. The strategy which is due to be considered by the Government by the end of July will include a range of legislative strategic and operational components to address graffiti vandalism nationwide. This bill represents the strategy’s legislative component only. Under the STOP strategy the Government has also committed $6 million over 3 years to communities and territorial local authorities to establish new or enhance existing anti-tagging and anti-graffiti activities. These activities may include education prevention diversion of offenders improvements to enforcement and prosecutions and more effective sentencing.  
No specific agency has been given responsibility for enforcing the bill’s provisions. A key feature of effectively enforcing the bill is keeping enforcement responsibility as flexible as possible. It is important that police or territorial local authorities can enforce any part of the bill while having primary responsibility for enforcing certain parts of it. This flexibility will enable local prioritisation and collaboration and alignment of enforcement between the police territorial local authorities and any other Government agency that may wish to enforce the bill’s provisions. Operationally the Minister expects that the police will be the primary enforcement body for the graffiti vandalism offence. It is expected that spray-can sales and restriction measures will largely be enforced by territorial local authorities with support from police where necessary. This aspect of the bill fits more appropriately with the regulatory functions of territorial local authorities and it provides a mechanism for them to contribute to the prevention of an offence of which they are often victims.  
Tagging and graffiti vandalism are not simply a nuisance activity. They are an invasion of private and public property that is often intimidating and antisocial. The majority of graffiti and tagging in our communities cannot be considered simply as art. It is often mindless scrawl that causes great financial and emotional costs which the perpetrators seem to care nothing about. Graffiti vandalism is not committed only by bored individuals. It often has links to gangs seeking to mark their territory and to other forms of juvenile delinquency that form the basis of future more serious offending. By making it more difficult for young people to obtain spray-cans and by creating the specific offences of graffiti vandalism and possession of graffiti implements our bill attempts to stem the flow of young people into more serious offending.  
This bill and the STOP strategy which sits behind it acknowledge the pain suffered by decent citizens of our country throughout our communities who are subjected to this type of crime. Over the course of this bill the Law and Order Committee and the House have heard anecdotes that show that tagging and graffiti are serious issues for our communities. The Minister the Hon Annette King thanks all the submitters for their valuable contributions to the formation of this bill. She also acknowledges the time and expertise of officials and members of the House especially the members of the exceptional Law and Order Committee who have worked hard to bring this legislation to fruition. On behalf of the Hon Annette King I commend this bill to the House for its third reading this afternoon.