Scoop has an Ethical Paywall
Work smarter with a Pro licence Learn More
Parliament

Gordon Campbell | Parliament TV | Parliament Today | Video | Questions Of the Day | Search

 

Government Should Not Waste Time On Review

"The Government should not be wasting time and money on yet another review, before telling the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child to butt out,” ACT Justice Spokesman Stephen Franks said. “The New Zealand Government does not need any review to know what New Zealanders want for criminal law.

“Fewer excuses, not more. A reformed child and youth justice system that says crime does not pay, that stops telling young people the community is not really serious about hating vile crime. The message must be the same for young and old, that the law does mean what it says. That means holding young bullies and their families accountable. The law should reduce the age of criminal responsibility, not increase the scope for them to thumb their noses at their suffering neighbours, the police and their victims.

“So they should stop shilly-shallying. The Australian government recently told an arrogant UN Committee to push off. Instead ours is scraping and apologising.

“Laila Harre clearly hopes that if she can defer an answer with the official review, current levels of public outrage about vicious kids will die down enough to let her impose what the Committee wants.

“If this Government respected ordinary New Zealanders it would say politely but firmly to the Committee, in a short, and honest response. Forget about it - we are here to represent the interests of New Zealanders. There is no evidence that what you want does anything to improve communities. A number of you come from countries that do not respect the rule of law, and have no understanding of freedom or responsibility. The New Zealand people think little of our political elite's failed experiment with offender centred justice. So there is no way they will stand for even sillier theories pushed by unelected and over privileged international bureaucrats. Don’t bother to argue, unless you come back with evidence,” Stephen Franks said.

ENDS


Advertisement - scroll to continue reading

Are you getting our free newsletter?

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.

© Scoop Media

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading
 
 
 
Parliament Headlines | Politics Headlines | Regional Headlines


Gordon Campbell: On The US Opposition To Mortgage Interest Deductibility For Landlords


Should landlords be able to deduct the interest on the loans they take out to bankroll their property speculation? The US Senate Budget Committee and Bloomberg News don't think this is a good idea, for reasons set out below. Regardless, our coalition government has been burning through a ton of political capital by giving landlords a huge $2.9 billion tax break via interest deductibility, while still preaching the need for austerity to the disabled, and to everyone else...
More


 
 

Government: Concerns Conveyed To China Over Cyber Activity
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has confirmed New Zealand’s concerns about cyber activity have been conveyed directly to the Chinese Government. “The Prime Minister and Minister Collins have expressed concerns today about malicious cyber activity... More

ALSO:


Government: GDP Decline Reinforces Government’s Fiscal Plan

Declining GDP for the December quarter reinforces the importance of restoring fiscal discipline to public spending and driving more economic growth, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says... More

ALSO:


Government: Humanitarian Support For Gaza & West Bank

Winston Peters has announced NZ is providing a further $5M to respond to the extreme humanitarian need in Gaza and the West Bank. “The impact of the Israel-Hamas conflict on civilians is absolutely appalling," he said... More


Government: New High Court Judge Appointed

Judith Collins has announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister Jason Scott McHerron as a High Court Judge. Justice McHerron graduated from the University of Otago with a BA in English Literature in 1994 and an LLB in 1996... More

 
 
 
 
 
 

LATEST HEADLINES

  • PARLIAMENT
  • POLITICS
  • REGIONAL
 
 

InfoPages News Channels


 
 
 
 

Join Our Free Newsletter

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.