Chester Borrows MP
National Party Police Spokesman

8 August 2007

King’s credibility on line over traffic quota policy

Police Minister Annette King’s credibility is today on the line over the release of an email that orders some Christchurch police officers to write 80 traffic tickets each despite her ordering police to get rid of quotas, says National’s Police spokesman, Chester Borrows

He is releasing an email by Canterbury Police District Youth Service Co-ordinator Senior Sergeant John Robinson in which he orders staff to write 80 tickets a year – down from an original plan of 197.

The email, dated 3 August this year, says: ‘But do accept that my idea of 197 notices (one for each school day) may be too hard to achieve’, and ‘This is a major reduction … I will be expecting it to be achieved. … If you are struggling to find any notices, please give me a time and location … and I will come and assist’.

“This is not an issue about traffic enforcement around schools,” says Mr Borrows. “It is vitally important that speed limits around schools are enforced rigorously.

“This is an issue about quotas, about police being ordered to go out and ‘find’ a set number of tickets, about supposed directives from the Police Commissioner, and about denials from Annette King.

“This is the fourth memo imposing ticket quotas from a different police district. It is not a one-off, as Helen Clark has tried to claim.

“After the third memo was made public last year, Annette King told Parliament:

- July 19: ‘Should there be memos that reflect anything other than [the commissioner’s directive that targets are not allocated to individual staff] then I would be very concerned indeed’.

- July 20: ‘I can tell Members that no such performance indicators now exist’, and ‘I would be interested if there were any memos of that nature after 5 July. I would be concerned, if that were to happen, and would ask the Commissioner of Police to account to me for it’.

“So what’s she doing about this latest email?

“It’s clear that quotas exist, and that police, in this case youth education service staff, have their salaries pegged to the number of tickets they dish out through KRAs (key responsibility areas).

“Anne King must front up and do something about it. If she doesn’t, the public will rightly judge that she has lost control of her portfolio.”

Attachment: police email; what Annette King and Helen Clark said about ticket quotas

ENDS

What Annette King told Parliament about traffic ticket quotas=

- “The Commissioner of Police addressed it in his policy statement on 5 July. There is a very clear policy statement for the New Zealand Police to follow. I will be judging the police on how closely they follow that directive.” [Hansard 19 July 2006]

- (when asked if she could give an assurance there were no more memos): “What I will be judging the police on from this day forward is the policy directive issued by the Commissioner of Police. I expect his directive to be carried out by police officers around New Zealand. Should there be memos that reflect anything other than that, then I would be very concerned indeed”? [Hansard 19 July 2006]

- “I accept, however, there has been some confusion over the past few years, about the concept of performance measures in regard to traffic enforcement. That confusion was put to rest by Commissioner Broad’s policy directive on 5 July” [Hansard 20 July 2006]

- “I can tell members that no such performance indicators now exist” [Hansard 20 July 2006]

- (when asked again if she could give an assurance there were no more memos): “I would be interested if there were any memos of that nature after 5 July. I would be concerned, if that were to happen, and would ask the Commissioner of Police to account to me for it.”

What Helen Clark said

- “… one swallow doesn’t make a spring, it is one email” [TVNZ Breakfast, 3 July 2006]

© Scoop Media