Parliament backs law change expanding use of GPS monitoring

File photo / NZ Herald

Parliament has unanimously backed a law change which expands the use of GPS monitoring for offenders.

The Electronic Monitoring of Offenders Legislation Bill passed its first reading last night with support from all parties.

It would allow courts to impose electronic monitoring, by radio frequencies or by GPS monitoring, for two types of sentences.

These were prison sentences of up to two years, with release conditions specified by a court, and intensive supervision sentences.

Corrections Minister Sam Lotu-Iiga said offenders in these categories had a higher likelihood of reoffending, in particular stalkers and offenders who were on protection orders.

"I am sure members right across this Chamber will see this as an advance in the protection particularly of women and particularly of vulnerable people who are subject to protection orders," Mr Lotu-Iiga said.

He also said it was important to maintain a balance between the need to electronically monitor offenders and to respect their liberties and privacy.

"In many respects it constitutes a search and it interferes with the privacy of individuals. So you have got to balance those rights to make it necessary for the offender to wear a device."

Labour's Phil Goff said his party would support the bill to the select committee stage, where it could be determined whether or not the measures went too far or not far enough.

"If it stands up to analysis and the evidence presented to us, we will continue to support it after that point."

Green Party MP David Clendon said it could "scarcely be described as a bold bill", but his party would support it because it created another alternative to imprisonment.

He said it enabled people to be participants in society while still making sure they were carefully monitored.

At present, electronic monitoring can only be imposed for people bailed to a specific address, or for people on community and home detention.

The bailees or offenders wore an anklet which sent an alert to the Department of Corrections if they entered an area they were banned from, or if they tampered with the device.