Mark Ron: Budget Debate 
Mark Ron: Budget Debate 
[Volume:639;Page:9530] 
RON MARK (NZ First) 
: 
 It is a pleasure to speak on behalf of New Zealand First on the Budget and particularly on the aspects of the Budget pertaining to Vote Police. How good is it when one enters into an agreement with the Government as New Zealand First has done to increase the fulltime-equivalent strength of the police by 1000 in fact and eventually to negotiate it to 1250 police? We hear all the criticisms coming from National as to how these things are not progressing and how police officers are not hitting the beat but then we look at the cold hard facts by reading the Budget itself. If we go to the second volume of B5 in the Budget documents we can look at the figures in there in terms of increasing front-line capacity and showing Budget increases. 
I draw the House’s attention to the Budget increases not just for this year but also for outgoing years 2008 2009 and 2010. I raise that because therein lies the completion of the second part of New Zealand First’s agreement with the Government—that is to bring up police numbers per capita to a level equal with Australia. A lot of noise comes out and I have to laugh—New Zealand First has to laugh—because we have had so many law and order spokespeople in National that we have lost count. We do not care to count any more. Now we have Chester Borrows there prattling on alongside Simon Power but the only two complaints we are reading about in the papers now from Chester Borrows and Simon Power are that we are catching too many crooks and there are too many in jail—the streets are too safe. It is getting easier to lock people up because there are more cells to put them in. In fact we are bulging at the seams. 
Well New Zealand First has one fundamental difference from National. When we say we are going to increase the fulltime-equivalent strength of the police force we do it. We do not increase police capacity by buying a dud computer for $200 million. We do not increase police capacity as National did by slashing 480 from the number of fulltime-equivalent police officers on the street; we increase that number by a thousand. 
Let me just say to Mr Chester Borrows that this is not a gimmick. National policy last election was to increase the number of front-line police—rubbish! It has always said that but history shows that it has never ever done it. To the contrary National in Government has always cut police numbers. The only time it increased the fulltime-equivalent strength of the police was when it merged the police with the Ministry of Transport and put a whole lot of traffic officers in the police force. That is how National did it—by sleight of hand; it was underhand. 
But National has said that our proposal is a gimmick. Well I tell the House that it is no gimmick and this Budget reflects that. We are on track to achieve our 1000 extra police and on track to achieve the extra 1250. Before we get carried away let us remember New Zealand First’s policy at the last election: it was to double the size of the police force. There will be not just an extra thousand; we have a bigger objective for full-time policing. There will be no mealy-mouthed little token gestures as National continues to prattle on about or worries about how many crims we catch and lock up. We are not ashamed of catching crooks. National has said we cannot afford to catch them—so what are they proposing? Will it slash the police force as it did in the 1990s and not catch them? 
It is a bit hard for National members to be running around and saying how terrible it is that grannies are getting attacked in their homes when they are now crying and bleating that we have too many people in jail. That does not make sense; what does make sense is that we now know National is clearly not serious. New Zealand First is proud of the policies we have pushed through with the Labour Government. We are proud to see that the Labour Government is honouring those commitments and the figures are here in the Budget—out-yeared to 2009. We are also proud of the $2.5 million that we have put in to address Maori crime and Maori juvenile delinquency on the streets by bolstering the Maori Wardens Association. We are putting $2.5 million into strengthening the organisation putting coordinators on the ground appointing full-time staff and providing vehicles radios and uniforms. And all of that will help to deal with the lawlessness we see on our streets. The next step is to try to get someone to be serious about dealing with organised crime and gangs. New Zealand First will focus its attention on that particular area next year and we are looking for someone who will be serious to talk to. Because clearly we are not hearing a lot of serious stuff coming out of National’s law and the order spokesman these days.