The Labour Party cannot accept National’s “very punitive” proposal to set up military-style academies for young offenders, says Carmel Sepuloni.
“I can't support something that isn't proven to work,” the deputy prime minister told The Indian Weekender.
Over the past few weeks, National’s leader Christopher Luxon has said if he were to become prime minister in the 2023 national elections, his government will put youth offenders through a rigorous rehabilitation programme.
But Sepuloni says “all of the evidence” shows that approach won’t work, and such a system does not “help them change their behaviour”.
“It sounds like, you know, these young people will be getting the punishment perhaps that some people think that they deserve for the crimes, but it is actually not going to change the situation.”
National has been going hard after law and order as it builds up its campaign for the October elections, pointing to incidents of aggravated robberies and assaults.
“Violent crime is up 30 per cent, retail crime is up 40 per cent. Gang memberships are up over 60 per cent,” Luxon told a gathering in North Shore recently.
Across the country, minors have often been reported for store robberies and attacks. Supporters of a harsher approach towards youth offenders argue existing laws are too soft to serve as a deterrent, or even serve as appropriate punishment.
“This government is soft on crime,” Luxon said. “We are going to back our police and give them the tools they need.”
The Labour government has backed its ‘Better Pathways’ crime package, a scheme intended to create more opportunities for young offenders, in the hope it will break their cycle of offending.
Sepuloni says such initiatives currently in place are already proving to be successful in dealing with the problem.
“It has reduced reoffending rates, which has put wraparound support into that young person's entire family to try and address some of the issues that have led to the offending. That's the stuff that will lead to a decline in criminal activity down the track.”
But National is lobbying for tougher sentences for young offenders. Its deputy leader, Nicola Willis, recently said police officials have told her off the record they are frustrated some youth offenders they arrest are "back doing it again" because of weak laws.
Speaking at a meet-and-greet organised by Waitakere Indian Association on April 28, 2023, Willis said if elected, her government will ensure tougher sentences are available for youth criminals.
"I've had conversations off the record with some of our credible men and women in the New Zealand Police, who do great service for us all, and they tell me that their frustration is that some of the youth criminals do something one weekend, get a little bit of a slap on the wrist and an invitation to a family conference over the next few weeks.
“But then the next weekend they're back doing it again. That is unacceptable to us all," Willis said at the Auckland event.
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