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Home / New Zealand

Costs of crime keep climbing

3 Apr, 2002 12:50 AM5 mins to read

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In the third of our series on value for tax money, police reporter SCOTT MacLEOD looks at the impact of Labour's policies on law and order - and youth crime in particular.

Labour's 1999 Pledge 6:

Crack down on burglary and youth crime.


Auckland caretaker William Kean once performed a deed that made
him a hero.

At 9.30 one night he was walking towards a grocery store when he heard yelling and saw four youths run off.

He gave chase and caught George Arthur Rewcastle, aged 15 or 16, with a sack holding tins of fruit and meat.

The court appearance of Rewcastle and three young friends 100 years ago was deemed worthy of an eight-paragraph report in the New Zealand Herald.

Had the case taken place last year, it would have been just one of an annual 60,000 burglaries in New Zealand - and the news would never have made the pages of Herald.

Youthful misdeeds have become so common that the Labour Party wooed voters at the last election with a $54 million plan to crack down on burglary and youth crime.

Has the plan worked?

Yes, say new figures, but there are still areas for concern.

The Government can point to statistics showing a drop in the number of burglaries, but there are few statistics available on other forms of youth crime.

Figures released on Friday show that burglaries fell 9.3 per cent last year, meaning 6000 fewer break-ins.

Combined with a drop of 8000 in 2000, that took the burglary rate to a 20-year low.

Police also solved more burglaries, boosting their "resolution" rate from 11.1 per cent to 16 per cent in the three years to last year.

However, the figures look less rosy when compared with the resolution rate for all crimes, which is 42 per cent. And a growth in violent crime last year of 5.9 per cent has sparked calls that the Government has misplaced its priorities.

National Party police spokesman Tony Ryall, for instance, said the figures were "great if your stereo gets stolen, but if you're bashed in the street then you've got trouble".

At the coalface, police officers are more positive.

Senior Sergeant Mike Fulcher, who is the community services manager for Counties Manukau police, said the extra tax money had made a strong impact on youth crime.

He said much of the money was spent hiring sergeants to supervise schemes at a community level, and on boosting the pay of youth aid workers.

The mana of youth work had improved, meaning staff were staying longer and forging better links with their communities. They were able to work better at tailoring education, employment or other schemes to help to move youths away from a life of crime.

The result was that the number of youth crimes in Counties Manukau had stayed the same during the past five years, although the population in that age group had doubled.

"We're doing more holistic work with youngsters now," Fulcher said.

"It's about professionalising youth aid. Our officers are becoming more experienced, and thinking outside the square."

Police Commissioner Rob Robinson said money aimed at burglary was well spent because it hit an "entry-level" crime. Cutting the number of burglaries had the long-term effect of stopping people from moving on to more serious offending.

"We've driven those numbers down by identifying the kids who are doing the offences and working with them to get them out of a life of crime.

"We seek curfews in court, then actually go and check to make sure they're in bed."

Robinson said last year's burglaries were down 20,000 on forecasts made a few years ago.

Householders consistently told police that car and vehicle break-ins were their biggest concern, despite a media focus on violent crime.

However, the speed at which police attend burglaries has slipped by three hours in just one year, to an average of 10 hours and 17 minutes.

Police attended 84.4 per cent of burglaries within one day of reports being received - short of the 97 per cent target the Government set when it was elected.

The Insurance Council was nevertheless pleased with the trend of fewer burglaries.

In the past two years, householders claimed $300 million for crimes against their homes and contents. Cutting those crimes by 10 per cent over three years - which it seems police have done - would almost pay for the crime tax increase by itself.

Council chief executive Chris Ryan said the crime-cost figures took into account only people who had lodged claims, so the true cost of such crime was likely to be higher.

Ryan praised police and the Government for curbing the burglary rate, but warned that the cost of petty crime was still "colossal" and there was no room for complacency.

Despite the praise, there remain problems for police that were highlighted last month when three girls were charged with the murder of 60-year-old Waitara truck driver Kenneth Pigott.

The arrests showed that youth offending is still a major problem. They also drew attention to violent crime - one area where statistics have been less favourable to police, with a 5.9 per cent jump lastyear.

Commissioner Robinson said the number of people aged 14 to 16 known to commit crimes had risen by 8 per cent since 1997.

Last week police unveiled a $2.7 million plan to hit burglaries in Auckland - sending non-sworn staff to investigate.

They will be trained to take fingerprints, interview witnesses and gather evidence for burglaries and car thefts.

Asked if there were any new priorities police would like to target, he said violence was obviously a concern.

However, he was equally worried about a surge in the use of methamphetamine (speed) - the first "white powder" drug to gain a big foothold here.

"It's a major addictive substance with horrific effects.

"It has the potential to knacker a whole generation of our kids."

Feature: The $1 billion question

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