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ACT

Policy in PDF format

Overview

The prime responsibility for any government is to keep its citizens safe. The failure to control crime undermines our communities and is ultimately a cost to all. ACT’s top priority in government is to increase the law and order vote by one billion dollars ($1000 million) in order to achieve a “zero tolerance for crime” policy, implemented and working effectively within 12 months. This will include an increase in police numbers, reintroducing community policing, and a focus on victims’ rights rather than criminals’ rights.

Policing

Community confidence and therefore support of the police has been eroded. Police need to be brought back into the community. The test of police efficiency will be the absence of crime and disorder.

• Increase police numbers, and recruit overseas police with experience in zero tolerance policing.
• Recruit back some experienced officers who have taken early retirement.
• Employ private sector security services for petty crime and for basic fraud/theft investigations and use non-sworn officers where possible to free up frontline staff
• Ensure more police are on the street. Re-introduce community policing.
• Zero tolerance policing. Early intervention for minor crime e.g. vandalism, disorderly behaviour, graffiti.
• Allow police to earn overtime beyond certain hours worked
• Ensure present laws are enforced by police.

Sentencing and Prisons

• “Truth in sentencing” – sentences served in full – to be introduced.
• Life without parole (LWOP) for aggravated murder.
• Bring back private prisons with contractual provisions that include zero tolerance for drugs, prisoner education and discipline as priorities.
• Prisoners must participate in educational opportunities available, and if they don’t, they must work.
• Introduce an audit hit-squad (e.g. former Army, SAS officers) with power to search, to ensure compliance with “no drugs” policy.
• Where drugs are found, prisoner privileges to be removed.
• Prisoners with drug and alcohol addictions to be placed in appropriate programme.
• Disestablish gang wings in prisons

Three Strikes and You’re in – in for life!

• A “three strikes” law, which targets violent offenders only, will be introduced – offences will be clearly defined to prevent the injustices which have occurred under similar laws overseas.
• On conviction for a second “strike” offence, the criminal receives the maximum penalty for that particular offence, and a warning of the consequences – 25 years to life – of conviction for a third.
• A person convicted of a third “strike” offence goes to jail for 25 years to life. No judicial discretion

Victims’ rights

• State to pay reparations awarded to the victims and recover from the offender through wages or welfare cheques.
• Strengthen Proceeds of Crime legislation to enhance asset seizure for victim reparation

Immigrants

• Unless naturalised New Zealand citizens, courts will have the power to send home convicted prisoners upon completion of their sentence.

Gangs

• Establish special unit in IRD to audit the income of gangs.
• Creation of an organised crime tactical operations unit
• Where criminal offences take place, confiscate the assets used to facilitate the crime (e.g. cars and motorbikes)
• Firearms offences will attract maximum sentences.

Courts

• Review court system which has become an expensive legal bureaucracy that is failing to deliver.
• Introduce a good behaviour bond for released criminals.
• Concurrent sentencing and automatic parole to be phased out.
• One law for all.
• Introduce a sliding scale of legal aid dependant on the number of convictions.
• Review bail laws, a breach of bail means straight to jail.
• Speed up courts (e.g. night courts) to clear backlogs and reduce unfair delays.

Mental Health

Mental illness is a significant driver of criminal activity, and drug related offences properly fall into this category. The ideology of Community Care has failed the most seriously mentally ill, their families and the public. It has cost lives and needs a comprehensive review.

• Supervised housing and proper care to be provided, this will more than pay for itself.
• A comprehensive review of the last two decades of community care to build on success and learn from mistakes.

Alliance

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Preamble

• The Alliance led the call for restorative justice processes in our criminal justice system. Due to our presence in Government, New Zealand now has the concept of restorative justice included in the relevant statutes. However, the needs of victims of criminal activity are still a major issue.
• The safety and security of our communities and groups within our community is a concern, especially the prevalence of gang-related crime and the rising incidence of race-based attacks.
• New Zealand has one of the highest incarceration rates in the Western world (second only to the US). Too many prisoners are Maori and poor.
• Increasing numbers of people with mental health problems are treated as criminals.
• Not everyone can access fair treatment from the justice system.
• Drug use is a health and social problem. Personal use of relatively harmless drugs such as marijuana is treated as a criminal justice issue.
• There is increasing unease at people in jail for offences they did not commit.

We stand for the following policies

Creating safe and secure communities: The Alliance is convinced that full employment, fully accessible education and health care will reduce crime rates and lead to safer communities. At the same time the Alliance is committed to an adequately resourced police force that works positively with community groups to prevent problems occurring and provide speedy responses and solutions to crimes.

Compensating victims of crime: The Alliance will establish a Victim’s Compensation Board to oversee the administration of a dedicated fund providing assistance to victims in recovering from crime and to help decide on any further compensation required.

Legal equality: Ensure an accessible, equitable and effective justice system for all. The Alliance will upgrade the civil and legal system so that qualified legal assistance is accessible to ordinary citizens and community organisations.

Establish an Office of Unsafe Convictions: Due to an increasing unease at people in jail for offences they did not commit, the Alliance is committed to the establishment of an office for unsafe convictions.

Gangs: The Alliance will address gang-related crime by a combination of adequate police resources, constructive employment schemes and restorative justice to run alongside the present justice system.

Young people: The Alliance will ensure young people (under 18) will not be incarcerated with adults either on remand or when sentenced. Young people will be kept in an environment specially designed for their requirements with particular attention to the need to reduce youth suicide in prisons. The Alliance does not support private prisons.

Mental health and the justice system: The Alliance is committed to the implementation of the ‘Blueprint for Mental Health’ report so that New Zealanders who need help get it before they commit a crime and end up in the prison system.

Cannabis: The Alliance takes a harm minimisation approach to drug and alcohol abuse and as such supports the decriminalisation of cannabis. The Alliance supports a minimum age of 18 for the use of cannabis and alcohol. We believe that there should be more effective enforcement of such restrictions and a strong education campaign aimed at young people and their parents.

Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party

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Law and Order

ALCP has the strongest law and order policy, because unlike the other parties we address both the black market status of cannabis, as well as the absolute failure of prohibition to limit supply and demand. With R18 legalisation NZ can expect a decrease in crime and fear in the community because of a return to credible, workable law.

By definition, criminalisation is self-perpetuating. It is creating crime, criminals and criminality on an unprecedented scale. Reliable research indicates there are as many as half a million consumers in NZ. Respect for rule of law has been compromised and dangerously eroded by this hypocritical and unsubstantiated criminal status.

By taking the criminality out of NZ’s most popular and prevalent illicit substance, police will be considerably freed up to contain and prevent real crime. Cannabis and 'hard drugs' markets will also be seperated.

Legal regulation will rebuild community tolerance, trust and respect. It will greatly reduce the fear-factor. Money currently misappropriated into crime creation via drug-law enforcement will be much better spent in the health and education sectors.

Legalising cannabis will create an environment where people are far more able and willing to co-operate with police.

Justice

Up to 20,000 people are convicted for cannabis offences every year in NZ. The unemployed, males and Maori are especially penalised by the law as it stands (Fergusson et al, CH&DS).

ALCP recognises the duty of Parliament to challenge injustice, and to break down prejudice and division. The Party advocates a full prohibition ‘Truth and Reconciliation’ commission in the interests of restorative justice.

Our policy recognises the importance of upholding individual rights where these do not unreasonably impinge on others.