KEY POINTS:
Prime Minister Helen Clark says the Government has been putting money and effort into tackling the problem of gangs and drugs, and a huge effort is needed to get on top of it.
National leader John Key yesterday promised that if his party wins the election it will crack down on gangs and the pure methamphetamine drug, known as "P", which they make and sell.
He outlined plans to increase police powers and strengthen laws to deal with the problem.
Helen Clark said today strategies were being improved all the time and the Government had already announced new measures to combat organised crime.
"It's very easy for opposition parties to stand up and make speeches about it, it's harder to actually get the impact," she said on NewsTalkZB.
"The problem is we are dealing with organised criminals, and it's not easy to get on top of.
"You can pass well-intentioned laws and have it have no effect at all."
Helen Clark said P was a terrible drug that destroyed lives, and she understood it was the most difficult drug police had ever had to deal with.
"It can be made up of ingredients which would otherwise be lawful on the market," she said.
"But we're talking organised crime, and it requires a huge effort to deal with it."
Helen Clark said she would like to see more gang arrests because they were "a blight on society".
"Going back many budgets now there's been extra investment put into police to deal with cracking down on P labs, penetrating the criminal gangs who peddle the stuff around, we've endeavoured to put stronger powers into the laws," she said.
Mr Key yesterday told a party regional conference that P was causing more problems than any other illegal drug.
"I'm sending a warning to every single P dealer, every P manufacturer and every gang involved in the P trade: National will not put up with your criminal activity," he said.
- NZPA
