Labour justice policy claims credit for reduced crime

Labour today announced its justice policy, claiming credit for reduced crime rates and promising to fully implement new measures already in the legislative pipeline.

Justice Minister Phil Goff said further reducing the crime rate was the key priority because that would improve the safety of all New Zealanders.

He said police statistics for 2001 revealed a fall in overall crime rates to the lowest level in 13 years.

Burglary, a target of Labour's election commitment card in 1999, fell to a 20-year-low.

"On provisional police figures, violent offending for the last 10 months has also begun to track down," he said.

"However, there can be no cause for complacency in the fight against crime.

"We need to ensure that the new system is tough in dealing with serious and high-risk offenders.

"We must equally ensure that we are putting in place measures which prevent crime by tackling its causes, not simply responding after the event."

Key points of the police are:

* entrenching tougher sentencing and parole regimes for serious and high-risk offenders. The legislation is already in place and $90 million has been set aside to handle the expected increase of 300-400 inmates a year;

* pass this year the Victims Rights Act making victims' rights mandatory and enforceable and extending those rights;

* fully implement the new youth offending strategy as a key crime prevention measure;

* further reduce crime rates by fully implementing the crime reduction strategy;

* further strengthen policing and tools available to police to crack down on crime;

* continue the reform and modernisation of the justice system and legislation, including replacing the Privy Council with a New Zealand Supreme Court.

"This is a comprehensive programme but considerable work has already gone into it," Mr Goff said.

"A tougher regime for serious offenders, preventing crime by tackling youth offenders, and strengthening victims' rights will be the key points of progress over the next three years."

- NZPA