Tanczos Nandor: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Tanczos Nandor: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:618;Page:13924] 
11.  
NANDOR TANCZOS (Green) 
 to the  
Minister of Police 
: Is he confident that police time is well prioritised? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS (Minister of Police) 
: 
 Generally yes. 
Nandor Tanczos 
: Can the Minister confirm that around 300000 police hours are spent each year on cannabis offences which is the equivalent of 50 front-line officers who could otherwise be investigating violent crime and property crime? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: I do not know whether it has escaped the member’s attention but cannabis is an outlawed drug in New Zealand and police enforce it very heavily. 
Nandor Tanczos 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker— 
Mr SPEAKER 
: No the question was addressed. I am telling the member that. 
H V Ross Robertson 
: What information has the Minister received regarding cannabis offences? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: I am advised that cannabis offences have dropped 19.4 percent and police operational hours around cannabis offences have fallen 18 percent since the Labour-led Government took office in 1999. That is a tremendous result. We are on top of it. 
Brian Connell 
: In relation to the primary question does the Minister believe that the growing expectation on police to hand out traffic tickets as evidenced by the New Zealand Police Statement of Intent 2004/2005 which aims to increase by 27 percent the number of tickets expected to be handed out—which is on top of the 30 percent increase from the year before—is placing an unnecessary burden on our police force and therefore diverting them from their other duties? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: The police enforce all laws. Traffic laws are important and if that member does not support that then he should say so. The police support the road toll coming down and it would be good if they got some support instead of whinging from the other side. 
Peter Brown 
: In light of that answer does the Minister believe that police time spent on traffic stops has a higher priority over fighting crime; if not will he consider splitting the police and setting up a highway agency as is being proposed in Britain in order to make both traffic administration and general policing more efficient and effective? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: I have to say that over the last few years the road toll has been generally coming down. The rate of crime is dropping and there will be more good results soon. It is dropping significantly and I cannot see the point of trying to unscramble an egg that that side over there put together. 
Dr Muriel Newman 
: Can the Minister deny that the police are currently carrying out a phone survey of the public asking for their opinion of the police and their attitudes towards them; and what is his response to claims that preliminary results show huge dissatisfaction? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: I can tell the member that the police continually monitor their performance by talking to the public and I would say that they are a lot more pleased with their results than that member’s party could be with its 2 percent poll rating. 
Keith Locke 
: Will the pressure on police resources result in a ministerial policy to stop traffic-assigned police doing roadside checks for overstaying given that this will lead to racial targeting and undermine the cooperation between migrant communities and the police needed to track down the real criminals? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: There is no such policy. The person is dreaming. 
Marc Alexander 
: Can the Minister confirm that the number of convictions where the use of cannabis was the sole offence was down to 1741 in 2003 and that nearly 60 percent of cases where custodial sentences result from cannabis offences include offenders who are guilty of other offences such as violence disorderly behaviour and property and traffic offences; and does he agree that those people are not the complete innocents that the Green Party tries to make them out to be? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: Regarding the first part of the question I will get detailed information for the member. Regarding the second part some of the people who use cannabis commit other crimes. It is a fact. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Mr Mark advised me that his supplementary question is slightly longer than usual. I have approved it. 
Ron Mark 
: What does it say about police priorities when a dispatcher faced with a call for help from an elderly lady is unable to dispatch a unit to her due to the fact that the one available constable is engaged in his fourth response with one pending despite there being seven highway patrol units in the same area none of which the dispatcher is permitted to deploy because dispatchers have been instructed that those units are not to attend to any other incidents including traffic accidents? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: The dispatcher needs to undergo retraining because he or she should be sending the nearest car be it a traffic vehicle or an ordinary police vehicle. 
Nandor Tanczos 
: Can the Minister confirm that last year police resources were spent convicting 19 people over the age of 60 for cannabis offences and can he tell the House how many of those were for medicinal use of cannabis? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: I do not have that precise number but I am always pleased when people breaking the law are caught. 
Ron Mark 
: Is it appropriate prioritisation to have highway patrol general traffic excess blood alcohol city traffic patrol and commercial vehicle investigating units dedicated to ticketing only and debarred from attending traffic accidents whilst general duties officers and incident car officers who struggle to keep up with violence and dishonesty offences are instructed not only to attend traffic accidents but also to issue one infringement notice per hour? 
Mr SPEAKER 
: I allowed one long question. That makes two long questions. The member is lucky today. He had better shorten them in future. 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: That member has been the police spokesman for that party for a long time. He should have better knowledge and a better background because it just simply is not true. I have instances where the highway patrol has had some very good catches—drug dealers burglars etc.—and it is about time that that member stopped bagging the police. 
Nandor Tanczos 
: Given the Minister’s answer to my previous question does he really believe that arresting elderly people for baking cannabis cookies to relieve their arthritis and insomnia is an effective deterrent to drug abuse? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: I would have thought that member would not support that going on because those biscuits are probably not labelled and packaged in a way that consumers can find out what they are putting into their bodies. 
Keith Locke 
: I seek leave to table a New Zealand Press Association document dated 16 June proving that there is a memorandum of understanding to be signed between the New Zealand Police and the Immigration Service to allow the roadside checks— 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Leave is sought to table that document. Is there any objection? There is.