KEY POINTS:
John Key, National
"[What is] worrying is Dame Margaret's comments that she is concerned the police impetus for change may not be sustained once the commission has reported. For that reason she has recommended oversight by the State Services Commission with annual audits of police culture, and monitoring of the commission's recommendations over the next 10 years by the Auditor-General."
Ron Mark, NZ First
"The Police Complaints Authority needs now to be absolutely 100 per cent independent. New Zealand First is going to ask now that the minister [Justice Minister Mark Burton] change the legislation he has drafted, to make the PCA an office of Parliament ... which has totally independent funding, which is not in any way subordinate to the Ministry of Justice or to the police and is seen to be totally and absolutely independent of those bodies."
Keith Locke, Green MP
"The police culture of 'back your mates' - even if they are wrong - lies at the heart of the problem of police sex offending that we are dealing with today. There were all kinds of police that knew what was going on and either said nothing or tried to cover it up ... In the Nicholas case the Police Complaints Authority relied on the police to do the investigation, which is like putting the foxes in charge of the chicken coop."
Tariana Turia, Maori Party
"The Maori Party was pleased to see the unreserved apology from Commissioner Howard Broad ... I was absolutely appalled that the president of the Police Association, Greg O'Connor, on today of all days can come out with a statement which says he hopes that police can get on with the job now and move on from 'the distractions that have occurred over the past few years'. Sexual assault is not a distraction; 141 upheld complaints are not a distraction."
Peter Dunne, United Future
"I am particularly concerned that the development of this evil culture and the protection of misbehaving officers behind a wall of silence has been helped by a system of promotion within police ranks that rely on senior officers advancing the careers of their mates from the ranks below."
