Borrows Chester: Estimates Debate — In Committee 
Borrows Chester: Estimates Debate — In Committee 
[Volume:632;Page:4173] 
CHESTER BORROWS (National—Whanganui) 
: 
 There is a line from Gilbert and Sullivan that ends: “A policeman’s lot is not a happy one”. In actual fact I never found it quite that way but there were so many pressures on the police and that remains so today. The police seem to be at the bottom of the tree. They are the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff and at the same time are criticised for not being the fence at the top of the cliff as well. When the on-duty social worker cannot be found or cannot be reached the police are rung. When the school is broken into the police are rung. When the road is blocked the police are rung. The police are the catch-all. 
I will give members an example. Last Sunday I was driving between Waverley and Hawera and there had been a bit of rain up our way. It was starting to dry out and there was a dirty great big rock lying in the southbound lane on a blind corner at Manawapou Hill. I drove up to the top of the hill where I could get some signal rang the local police station and told them. I was told I would be put through to “coms”. I was put through to the communications centre. I stayed on the phone and I was told numerous times that my call was important that I was in a queue and “For God’s sake don’t hang up!” so I hung on. I hung on for 15 minutes and after 15 minutes I did hang up. I rang the police station again and said: “I tell you what—how about you ring coms?”. 
Police officers want a number of things but I do not believe that they want too much. One thing they want is support. They want the numbers and the powers and the Government confidence in them to be able to police with enthusiasm in the way they know it should be done. They want when they need ten staff members to get ten staff members—but that is not always the case. This year it is 25 years since the Springbok tour. During the Springbok tour I was a cop in Nelson. There was a sergeant and five on five sections who worked around the clock. Tonight I rang up my mate who is a sergeant in Nelson and there is a sergeant and two staff members on duty. Things have changed. 
Just before the election Labour took six staff members away from the Wanganui station and put them somewhere else closer to Auckland where apparently they were required. Everybody in Wanganui said “Dumb move!” but not the Government. All Labour could quote were the overall staff numbers and levels which had gone up nationally: “You don’t need those staff; you won’t get ’em; and you won’t get ’em under us.” A local councillor decided to put together a petition. He put together a petition for extra police. Labour said “Rubbish!”. In fact Labour in our area screeched “Rubbish! You don’t need ’em.” In fact 11000 people signed the petition and Labour still said “Rubbish! You don’t need them.” The campaign heated up and Labour still said “Rubbish!”. National’s policy was to increase the number of police at that time prior to the election and its policy was to increase those numbers by about a thousand. But still Labour said—members have guessed it—“Rubbish! Scaremongerers!”. 
Winston Peters promised to double police numbers just before he promised he would not take the baubles of office. He was going to double the number of police. He was going to have so many police they would be coming out of his ears and we would not know what to do with them. But Labour said that that was—members have guessed it—“Rubbish!”. Then the polls kicked in and Labour said: “Tell you what: we’ll give you 250 more community cops.”—and National said “Rubbish!” and New Zealand First said “Rubbish!”. But Labour needed a coalition partner and looked around and Winston said “Pick me. Pick me.” Labour said “A thousand new police?” and Winston said “Yes now you’re smokin’!”. The Greens said “Rubbish!” and Labour said “Now you’re smokin’.” So the Government reckons it will get its thousand new coppers and I tell you what—I really hope it does because I do believe we need them. And I hope they do because nothing is better than seeing a Labour Government implement National Party policy. 
I cannot say it will be easy; the Minister has agreed it will not be easy. The trouble is that the quota system has been denied and the calculation of income as revenue has still been denied but when the Government has been forced to admit it it has had to admit that there has been a negative impact on policing because so many of the police are turning down jobs on the basis that they do not want to become “road Nazis”.