Worth Richard: Sentencing and Parole Reform Bill — New Zealand Bill of Rights Act Compliance First Reading 
Worth Richard: Sentencing and Parole Reform Bill — New Zealand Bill of Rights Act Compliance First Reading 
[Volume:652;Page:1424] 
Hon Dr RICHARD WORTH (Associate Minister of Justice) 
: 
 It is very appropriate that the Sentencing and Parole Reform Bill be the subject of scrutiny by the Law and Order Committee on the referral of the House. The bill will be afforded the opportunity of full process public participation and of course a report back to the House in the context of our Parliamentary procedures. 
As a general proposition I make the comment that New Zealanders have lost faith in sentencing and parole laws and that major changes as we have seen in recent days are on the way. The public is rightly concerned about the number of serious offences committed by people who have been released on parole. The public is also concerned about the sentences of home detention that are given to violent criminals so restoring the public’s faith in sentencing and parole will be a priority over the next period. The community needs to be assured that people who are a threat are kept behind bars. The public also needs to be assured that processes are in place to ensure that prisoners are rigorously monitored and are released only when they present no threat to the community. So I say that New Zealanders have to have confidence that policies for sentencing and parole are focused on keeping the community safe and providing appropriate consequences for offenders. 
I pick up what the Hon Simon Power said a few moments ago: “Parole is not a right for prisoners; it is a privilege—a privilege that must be earned.” and I say that any decision to grant parole to an offender should put first the public’s right to safety. Parole should be granted only to prisoners who have demonstrated that their behaviour has changed. There are—and I think we know these cases—a number of people whose offences are simply so horrific that they do not deserve the opportunity to be released into our communities on parole. The Government is determined to make sure that the law reflects that reality so under this Government the worst repeat violent offenders will be in prison for the full duration of their terms. We believe that the knowledge that they will serve their full sentences in prison if they reoffend will increase the deterrent effect of other prison sentences. 
One needs only to look at the statistics. The rate of violent crime increased by 11.1 percent from 2006-07 to 2007-08. The rate of grievous assaults was up by 11.7 percent that of serious assaults was up by 13.7 percent and that of minor assaults was up by 13.2 percent. The rate of intimidation and threats was up by 7 percent and that of group assemblies was up by 19.6 percent. No one can be proud of those statistics. Since 1999-2000—and I choose that date because it is the date the Labour-led Government came into power—the rate of violent crime has risen by a massive 46.6 percent. It has gone from 40090 offences to 58761 offences. We need only to look at some of the classes of significant criminal activity to be appalled by the figures. The rate of kidnapping and abduction is up by 68 percent and the rate of grievous assaults has nearly doubled—it is up by 89.7 percent. The rate of robberies is up by 57 percent that of serious assaults is up by 54 percent that of intimidation and threats is up by 67 percent and that of sex crimes has risen by 12.5 percent. 
That is why a central aspect of the last election campaign was quite clearly the need to deal determinedly with law and order issues. This bill forms part of the action plan for violent crime that Prime Minister John Key outlined before the election. The Government is delivering on its promises.