Newman Muriel: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Newman Muriel: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:606;Page:4075] 
12.  
Dr MURIEL NEWMAN (ACT NZ) 
 to the  
Minister of Police 
: What is the aggregate total number of days of leave not yet taken by sworn police as at the end of February 2003 and what assurance can he give that a build up of untaken leave is not compromising public safety or the ability of police to do their job? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS (Minister of Police) 
: 
 I am informed that as of 26 February there was an average of 34.3 days’ leave owing to each sworn officer which comes to a total of 265000 days. I am further advised that untaken leave does not jeopardise public safety. 
Dr Muriel Newman 
: Why is there a record 1000 working years of leave due to the New Zealand Police which is worth more than $50 million and can the Minister deny that the police are being told to “use it or lose it” even though his decisions to cancel recruit intakes and to deploy police to Auckland have left the regions so short of staff that leave is being cancelled? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: I was interested to see that that member said: “A lot of police will be tired and stressed out by not having leave.” yet she is in a party that criticised the passing of the Health and Safety in Employment Act. The police are confident that leave is being handled reasonably well. 
Martin Gallagher 
: Could the Minister outline what is the acceptable maximum number of days’ leave owing to a sworn police officer? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: An individual officer can accumulate up to 66 days of leave owing. 
Hon Tony Ryall 
: Is there any link between leave not taken by police in the Bay of Plenty region and the fact that the burglary response time has doubled in the last year in the Bay of Plenty region? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: I can tell the member that throughout the 1990s the average amount of leave owed was always over 30 days so it has not increased dramatically. Furthermore the police in the Bay of Plenty need the member’s support because they are doing a good job and they do not like their local member dumping on them. 
Hon Dr Nick Smith 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. The Minister said that my colleague Tony Ryall was dumping on Bay of Plenty police. That is not true. I do not think anybody in this House believes that. If you will continually allow Ministers to attack the integrity of members who ask questions this House will never have any order. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: I judge statements made and with regard to a previous comment made I asked the member to withdraw and apologise. But I thought this was a political exchange and that the comment did not deserve a withdrawal and an apology. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. You might have been distracted and did not hear the Minister’s comment that local police do not like that member’s gobbledegook. Frankly the Minister would not know what Bay of Plenty police think of Tony Ryall and I bet there is not one person who has ever said to him that Tony Ryall was talking gobbledegook. He is not only misleading the House but being abusive. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: I refer members to Speaker’s ruling 35/5: “If a member against whom the reference is made objects it will be ruled out. But if that member takes no objection it will only be ruled out if it is offensive on the face of it.” Having said that I think it would be in the member’s interest to withdraw that comment. 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: I withdraw that comment. 
Dr Muriel Newman 
: What is the Minister’s response to newspaper reports that the build up of leave is reducing productivity and putting enormous pressure on police and their families and that relief workers are not available to cover police if they do go on leave; and how can he possibly assure the House that that state of affairs is not putting public safety at risk? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: I assure the member that the comments she made in the  
Waikato Times 
 do not fairly reflect the situation. The Waikato district commander Superintendent Kelvin Powell said that on average Waikato staff are owed 25.9 days’ leave. 
Dr Muriel Newman 
: I seek leave to table the said report from the  
Waikato Times 
. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Leave is sought to table that document. Is there any objection? There is.