Candidates differ on crime, punishment

Napier Conservative Party candidate Garth McVicar, wants "entry level" criminals to pay for their crimes. Photo / Duncan Brown

Napier Conservative candidate Garth McVicar says the alleged attack on a 12-year-old Hastings boy by five high school students highlights the need to ensure youth offenders face "consequences" for their crimes.

Azaleas Quenton was hit from behind before falling to the ground where his face was kicked and stomped on repeatedly during an attack last Friday.

It is believed the alleged offenders, three girls and two boys, were from local high schools as some were in uniform at the time.

Police have said they are "following positive lines of inquiry" but no arrests have yet been made.

Mr McVicar, founder of the Sensible Sentencing Trust, said the incident was "totally unacceptable".

He is advocating a return to a regime of judges imposing suspended sentences and reparation payments on young people. If the reparation was not paid, judges could activate the suspended sentence. "I believe there have to be consequences at the entry level into our criminal justice, particularly with our youth. The current youth justice system doesn't do that and that is one of the reasons why we have so many of our young offenders escalating up to become serious offenders," he said.

"It was all about holding you accountable for your offending at the first offence. Currently a typical offender has 14 or 15 offences before they go to jail. It's not about using jail more; it's about making sure there are consequences at an earlier stage."

National's Napier candidate, Wayne Walford, said crime statistics had been coming down as a result of the National Government's focus on prevention. The party was also campaigning on victim rights and tougher sentences for serious crime.

Tukituki National MP and cabinet minister Craig Foss said the attack had happened in "a by-and-large very safe community -- that raises all sorts of other questions around the kids themselves and I am really hopeful that their parents are horrified".

Mr Foss said some crime categories were at a 30-year low across the country and foot patrols by police in Hawke's Bay had increased almost 100 per cent as technology enabled them to spend more time on the streets.

"At the end of the day some kids have got out of control and bashed another kid. That is wrong and they will be caught ..."

Labour's Napier candidate, Stuart Nash, said the attack was an example of what happens in "a society that is disaffected and disengaged".

"When was it acceptable for older kids to beat up a 12-year-old? What is going on in the homes of these kids for this sort of behaviour to be acceptable? We need to do something to stop this and the best way to do it is to provide people with hope, opportunities and jobs -- and that's what Labour it about."

Napier's Green candidate, Paul Bailey, said while there was no excuse for the type of attack Azaleas had suffered, "when there's great inequality and great poverty, then there are always going to be issues such as this".

He said for the Greens, law and order involved taking a wider look at why crime was happening in society.

In the Tukituki electorate, where the attack occurred, Labour candidate Anna Lorck said she had been impressed at the way young people had taken to social media to speak up in support of Azaleas.

"Our younger generation is saying this is not okay. This needs to be addressed and Hawke's Bay has the worst crime rate in the country for violent crime and assault."

Labour's Ikaroa Rawhiti MP, Meka Whaitiri, said the broad daylight attack "defied belief".

A range of Labour policies from increased police funding through to improving health, education and family services would help address the issues it raised, she said. "What we want to do is create more positive pathways for young people."